Shiz University Musical
by completelymadalena
Summary: Shiz is staging it's very first musical and no one is more excited than one Galinda Upland. What happens when she drags her moodified green room mate into it too? Horrible singing, costume disasters and a very unconventional love story ensue! GELPHIE. A mixture of bookness and musicalness.
1. Chapter 1

This is not only my first Wicked fic, but my first fic in general so I apologise in advance if it's horribly written.

Disclaimer: I do not own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

Elphaba Thropp had suffered a horrifying amount of torment in the six months she'd spent rooming with one Galinda Arduenna Upland and yet not much of it compared to the utter terror of her current situation. Hundreds of students from both Crage and Briscoe Hall were packed into the usually spacious lunch hall with its high ceiling and large tables. On this day, though, it was stuffy and extremely uncomfortable. Which was why Elphaba had made sure she stayed close to the walls and far to the back to ensure no one spotted her in the crowd. No one, that is, except for her infuriating blonde roommate and mortal enemy.

Galinda was stood right at the front of the sea of students with her empty headed friends Pfannee and Shenshen. Elphaba had heard their inane chatter and giggling all the way at the back, even as Madame Morrible roared out instructions. All Elphaba had gathered from Morrible's ranting was that Shiz was putting on some kind of performance and the fish faced headmistress was urging students to consider taking part. In an exasperated moment of boredom, the green girl had been considering trying to escape before the shrill voice of her roommate stopped her train of thought.

"Miss Elphaba would fit that role perfectly, would she not?" Galinda shrieked. The hall erupted in snickers and giggles and Elphaba clenched her fists.

"She wouldn't even need a costume!" Shenshen's high-pitched voice chimed in between the laughter.

Elphaba could see a head of blonde curls bob up and down frantically and had to fight the urge to growl out a response.

"Don't be preposterous, the villain needs to be a male!" Someone shouted out above the noise.

"Have you _seen_ the green bean's figure lately? She could easily pass for a man!" Pfannee sneered, earning another burst of laughter. "Miss Galinda is right, the artichoke is perfect!" The dark haired Munchkinlander turned her head and squinted, searching for a spot of green in the crowd of pink.

Elphaba ignored the amused glances she received from the students beside her and watched Morrible examine the clipboard she was holding. The headmistress nodded to herself and ticked something off her list.

"That's enough!" She looked Elphaba in the eye, a vile smirk on her lips. "Miss Elphaba will play the villain, Miss Galinda the princess and-"

"Master Fiyero!" Galinda's giddy voice cried out. "Master Fiyero should be my prince!"

Most of the students muttered their agreement and turned this way and that, searching for the dark skinned Vinkun. Elphaba spied Fiyero on the opposite side of the hall, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. She couldn't tell whether the smile on his lips was amused or simply embarrassed but he stepped away from the wall and bowed. Girls swooned and boys rolled their eyes at his display.

"I would be honored to play your prince, Princess Galinda," he said, straightening up and winking at a few of the girls at his side while Galinda and her friends let out cries of joy. "And to slay such a beast as she." Fiyero held his head high and looked right at Elphaba, miming a sword in his hand.

"I'd be careful if I were you, Master Fiyero, you wouldn't want to cut yourself," Elphaba said flatly before turning back to Morrible. "I won't be participating." And with that, she stormed her way through the crowd. Students dodged and dove to avoid colliding with the green freak, as they had so affectionately named her. Before she could leave, however, Galinda made a noise not unlike a newborn baby. Pfannee and Shenshen and an absurd amount of other students rushed to aid her.

"This has to be perfect! And it won't be perfect without Miss Elphaba!"

"Now, now, Miss Galinda!" Shenshen cooed as she grabbed her blonde friend's arm, pulling her upright again.

"Silence!" Madame Morrible growled out above the uproar. "Miss Elphaba, you _will_ take part in this musical. I, and Miss Galinda, shall not take no for an answer."

* * *

" _Musical_?!" Elphaba whispered to herself as the crowd dissipated into a few stragglers. She shook her head and looked around. Boq and Avaric were stood chatting a few feet away from her. Not wanting to speak to her two reluctant acquaintances, she turned on her heel and made for the door.

"Elphaba!"

Her jaw clenched and she forced herself to move over to the owner of the cheerful voice. "Master Boq. Master Avaric." She said, nodding to each boy.

"Our very own villain! Who would have known?" Avaric smirked, his hands deep in the pockets of his trousers.

"The green skin was a hint," Elphaba grunted. "And who or what are you playing, Master Avaric? A rock or a tree?"

"A farmer, actually," Boq said, grinning.

Avaric made a face and nudged his Munchkin friend. "A farmer who just happens to be an important part of the story."

"I'm sure." Elphaba narrowed her eyes.

"I'm one half of a horse," Boq said, playing with the buttons on his cardigan.

"A role every actor aspires to!" Avaric laughed out loud. "I'm sure Fiyero will enjoy riding you!" He clapped Boq on the back and sauntered out of the hall. Elphaba glared after him, shaking her head.

"I was so hoping to be the prince," Boq said wistfully.

"You, and every boy from Briscoe Hall."

"It's not fair! Fiyero probably can't even sing!" Boq stamped his foot like a toddler.

"And you can?" Elphaba quirked a brow, amused but intrigued.

"I'll have you know, Miss Elphaba, that I come from a musically gifted family. My father played the violin!"

"I suppose I'll have to take your word for it." Elphaba shrugged. "Why didn't you push for a singing part, then?"

"I was barely heard above all the commotion. Miss Galinda ignored me," he mumbled, looking at his feet. "I'm supposing you have a good voice though, Elphaba?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, the villain has a big song. And a duet. Surely you were listening?"

Elphaba widened her eyes. She hadn't been listening at all really. Not until Galinda had cruelly mentioned her. She hadn't even known this farce was a _musical_ until the assembly had ended. A musical! "Of course I was listening," she snapped, crossing her arms. "Miss Galinda and her band of ninnies were being too loud, that's all."

"I can teach you, if you'd like," Boq offered, smiling up at her.

Elphaba only furrowed her brow before noticing that Galinda and Pfannee were still sat at one of the tables at the far end of the hall along with a few other girls she didn't recognize. They were scribbling on a large piece of paper and drinking tea. Galinda was absentmindedly biting her lip, gazing around the room as if she were trying to remember something. Her gaze soon fell on Elphaba and Boq and she smirked before muttering something to a red haired girl to her right.

"Come now, we're going to get you a singing part." Elphaba grabbed Boq's shoulder and before he could protest, she hauled him towards the table the girls were seated at.

"Morrible said the prince and princess share a true love's kiss at the end!" One of the girls squeaked. A few of the others made obnoxious noises before Elphaba cleared her throat.

Galinda snapped her head around and was met by the face of her villain and the poor flushing Munchkin boy.

"Miss Galinda, is the role of the horse's behind a singing role?"

Pfannee and the rest of the girls gasped. "Excuse me?"

"Is the horse perhaps a Horse? Does it sing?"

"Don't be ridiculous, of course not!" Galinda said, pursing her red lips.

"Well then, Master Boq needs a different part."

"And why is that, Miss Elphaba?" Galinda asked.

"Master Boq is a talented singer."

The girls burst into laughter, including Galinda herself, who couldn't keep from giggling at the idea. Elphaba frowned, turning to Boq, whose eyes were averting her gaze.

"Nevermind, Miss Elphaba. We - we should-"

"No, Boq." The stubborn green girl slammed her hand on the tabletop. "You deserve a better part."

"He _deserves_ the part he has. He's the only one short enough to be the horse's behind," Pfannee chimed in harshly. Galinda stifled another giggle.

"Now, that just isn't true. I'd say your face is more than qualified to fill the part, Miss Pfannee," Elphaba spat. The group of girls gasped again.

"Miss Elphaba! You will not win Master Biq another role by insulting my friends!" Galinda stood up, poking a manicured finger at her green roommate. The blonde then smoothed out her blue dress and held her head high. "Though perhaps if you asked nicely, I would reconsider."

"I'll give him my role."

"What?!" Galinda wailed before shaking her head. "I mean, excuse me? You cannot do that, Miss Elphaba!"

"I've made it clear that I have no intention of participating in such childish fantasies." Elphaba straightened up and glowered at the small blonde before her. "Therefore Master Boq shall take my place. He's more than adequate."

"I wouldn't say that..." Pfannee murmured but Galinda cut her off.

"That will not do! The villain is an awful beast, a hideoteous monster! Not some," Galinda thought for a moment before pointing at Boq, "little Munchkin critter!"

"And who would play such a horrid creature if not you, Miss Elphaba?" Pfannee asked, grinning. Most of the girls nodded in agreement. It was then that Galinda tilted her head and smiled sweetly before taking her seat once again. Elphaba's jaw clenched, her palms were sweating and she wanted nothing more than to throttle that stupid blonde girl. Fortunately for her, Boq had sensed her growing anger and pulled her out of the lunch hall.

"Thank you, Miss Elphaba," he muttered as they took the walk back to Crage Hall.

"There isn't much to thank me for."

"You tried. That's enough," he said, smiling sadly. "I suppose some people aren't meant to be dashing princes."

Elphaba stayed silent the rest of the way back to the dorm. Boq eventually bid her farewell and left for Briscoe Hall, his shoulders slumped and a sigh on his lips.

Once inside, she sat on her drab bed and read until the sun went down. Elphaba enjoyed _reading_ stories, not being a part of them. And _especially_ not if she had to sing.

Just as the last slither of sunlight was shining through the window, Galinda returned. The bouncing blonde shut the door quietly and hurried to her side of their shared room without even a glance in Elphaba's direction. The sound of her opening drawers and moving papers and bottles of perfume around threw the green girl from her reading. Grumbling, she shut the rather engrossing book and placed it upon her lap. Her eyes were sore from concentration and her stomach rumbled. Galinda didn't notice her green roommate's intense stare; she was far too busy humming a tune and wiggling her behind as she searched for something or other.

"Aha!" The blonde squeaked after rummaging in her bottom drawer. Elphaba saw her pull out what looked like a worn book. The back cover was hanging off and the writing on the spine was almost completely faded. The green girl narrowed her eyes. Of course Miss Galinda wouldn't take care of books like she did. She glanced down at the clean, undamaged book in her lap.

Galinda huffed and puffed out her cheeks as she cleared a space on her normally unused desk and slammed the old book down. Her nimble fingers opened it and flicked through the first few pages. Sheet music. Galinda Upland was reading sheet music. Elphaba's nose wrinkled and she had to suppress a grunt. Galinda flipped through the pages quickly until she got to a different section. Elphaba adjusted her glasses and squinted her eyes but couldn't make out what the airheaded blonde was so interested in.

The two girls sat in silence for over an hour. Elphaba had grown bored of watching Galinda furrow and unfurrow her brows as she read and had returned to reading her own book. She tried to ignore how strange it felt.

"I can teach you," Galinda said, her voice husky from lack of use.

Elphaba didn't look up from her book, though she was curious.

"Miss Elphaba!"

"Hm?"

"I said," Galinda cleared her throat and sat upright. "I can teach you."

"What could you possibly teach me besides how to be an insufferable, obnoxious brat?" Elphaba fixed her roommate with a cold look before slowly closing her book.

"I'm trying to help you!"

"The only way in which you could have helped me was by giving my role to Master Boq."

"I was never going to do that and you know it!"

"Because I'm a - what was it? 'Hideoteous' beast?" Elphaba scoffed.

"No one in Shiz can rival your," Galinda looked the green girl in the eye, "condition."

"And what in Oz is that supposed to mean?" Elphaba was close to getting up and leaving the room.

"You're the perfect monster!" Galinda blurted out, annoyed. "And it would save us money on make-up and costuming," she added feebly.

The room was quiet for a few minutes before Galinda spoke again. "I can teach you how to sing. I was trained from a young age, back in Gillikin. My dear Momsie used to say I could be a professional singer if I kept at it. Though I always preferred the prospect of simply marrying a rich man and raising a family with his money." The blonde giggled but quickly remembered she wasn't speaking with Pfannee or Shenshen or any of her other friends. This was Elphaba Thropp and said Elphaba was glaring at her, unamused and unimpressed.

"How kind of you," Elphaba muttered, "but as I have said, several times, I am not taking part in this charade." She pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. "Find yourself another monster."

Galinda said nothing. She only stood up from her chair and threw herself onto her bed of pink cushions and hid her face in her hands.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you to everyone who took the time to read chapter one! I tried to make this chapter a lot longer, so I hope you enjoy it.

Also: for the sake of this story, I made Miss Greyling into a music teacher. And she plays the piano. Mostly because I didn't want to use Dr Nikidik!

Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

"So, Miss Galinda," Milla asked the next day at lunch, "is Master Fiyero a good singer?"

Galinda nearly choked on her tea. In truth, she had no idea. The thought hadn't crossed her mind. When she'd brought the idea of a musical production to Madame Morrible, her blonde head full of fairytales and songs, Galinda had been thinking of nothing but the idea of herself and Fiyero playing the leads. The intimidating headmistress was skeptical at first but if the most popular girl in Shiz couldn't convince her, who could? Morrible eventually agreed, even suggesting an old wives tale about a princess that was captured by an evil witch jealous of her beauty. It wasn't a musical, of course, but that wouldn't stop Galinda. She swore she would work with Miss Greyling and her piano to produce the songs. The problem of having no experience hadn't phased her then but now she was doubting herself.

She was pulled from her panicked thoughts by the expectant looks on her friends' faces. Milla set down her cup, glancing warily from Pfannee to Shenshen. "Miss Galinda?"

The blonde knew _her_ singing voice was flawless, but Fiyero's? Her heart hammered in her chest at the possibility of Fiyero being any less than perfect. "Well," she started, twirling a curl of blonde hair around her finger. "I'm not sure exactly."

Milla's face paled, Shenshen very nearly spilled tea on her new dress and Pfannee shook her head.

"I'm going to teach him!" Galinda cried.

"Weren't there auditions?" Milla asked timidly.

"Most of the songs were written for me! There was no need for auditions."

"Perhaps you'll have to give that Boq boy the role after all," Pfannee said, a smirk forming on her lips.

"I'd rather die!"

"What about the toad?" Pfannee asked. "Is her voice as ugly as she is?"

"I wouldn't know..." Galinda replied quietly. She was starting to think this was a bad idea. Her main concern with Elphaba was getting the green freak to comply - the singing took a back seat when such a perfect villain was there for the taking. Nobody in all of Shiz could argue that. Elphaba was born to be the villain to Galinda's princess. "I'm having enough trouble getting her to even agree to take the part. This morning she left before I could say a word to her!"

"What an ungrateful beast!" Shenshen said, shakily putting down her cup and saucer. "The role was written for her! I even have sketches of her costume ready!"

"The black dress and the disgustifying hat you showed me?" Galinda perked up.

"Yes! Those strange boys from Three Queens helped me with it." Shenshen's smile died. "What a waste of time..."

"I suppose we're canceled?" Milla murmured.

"No!" Galinda shouted. Her friends were being far too negative - something a proper lady is never. She would have her prince and her stubborn green villain. "Someone with as handsome a face as Master Fiyero is sure to have an equally beautiful voice!" Galinda said, sitting up straight. "And the green bean will do whatever I ask of her, I'll make sure of it."

"I hope you're right, Miss Galinda," Shenshen said before sipping her tea.

* * *

After a particularly excruciatingly boring afternoon of classes, Galinda resolved to find out if Fiyero was worthy. And so she'd pounced on the boy after class, dragging him through the halls until they escaped into the fresh air. The two of them often took walks in the grounds of Shiz but Fiyero was never this quiet. The Vinkun hadn't uttered more than four of five words since they'd left class. The tall boy had been ignoring her advances for weeks and Galinda was growing tired of the games he played. She was positive if she made them both the leads in the musical, he would finally understand exactly how much she wanted him.

As they approached Suicide Canal, Galinda found herself growing annoyed and had to fight the urge to stamp her foot and force the boy into talking with her. "Master Fiyero, what's the matter?"

"If I'm to be your prince, I think we're past the formalities. Call me Fiyero."

"All right, _Fiyero_ , what's the matter?" Galinda's heart was about to burst.

"Why do you ask?"

"You've barely said more than four words to me. And one of them was 'hello'!"

"That's only because you were talking so much. Frankly, I'm surprised I could even fit four in."

"Well - I apologize, but I'm just - you see..."

"It was better when you weren't stuttering."

Galinda pouted and playfully nudged him toward the edge of the canal.

"Forgive me," he said, regaining his balance. "I know you must be under a lot of pressure, what with everything. I want to help in any way I can."

Galinda's heartbeat thumped in her ears. Her palms felt sweaty, her head muzzy. Throwing Fiyero into the canal would have been easier than this. She shook her head and took a deep breath. "Actually, there is something I need help with..."

"Anything," Fiyero whispered.

"Would you duet with me?"

Fiyero blanched. "What? Right now?!"

"Of course," Galinda said sweetly. "Unless you have a good reason not to." She took a step towards the dumbfounded boy, a frightening darkness in her usually bright blue eyes.

"People will hear us." Fiyero peered past her, staring at the groups of students buzzing around on the grass behind them.

"That's what we want!" Galinda puffed out her chest. "Don't we?"

"Yes - yes, we do."

"I'll begin." Tossing her hair and adjusting her dress, the blonde twirled backwards.

Head held high, Galinda sang. She hit high notes and low notes and everything in between and didn't let the look on Fiyero's face stop her. Students ceased their conversations to watch and listen, some of their muttered compliments reaching Galinda's ear. They loved her! Not that she doubted that. It was what came next that terrified her.

Fiyero's shaky voice cut through the air like a bad smell. Galinda's mouth opened and closed but she just couldn't muster the courage to make him stop. She wasn't sure what the biggest insult was; the flocks of students groaning and standing up to leave or the fact that Fiyero got most of the lyrics wrong. It was when he failed to hit an especially high note that Galinda knew enough was enough.

"For the love of Oz, stop!" She yelled, her eyes tightly closed and her hands clenched around the skirts of her dress.

"My sentiments exactly," an amused voice, deeper than her own, said.

The first thing Galinda saw as she cracked one eye open was the wounded expression on Fiyero's face, quickly followed by a flash of green and blue in her peripheral vision. "Miss Elphaba!" Elphaba stood a few feet away, an open book in her hands. She appeared to still be reading and showed no sign of acknowledging that Galinda had spoken. "Oh, Fiyero!" The blonde shrieked, throwing herself forward into Fiyero's arms. "You're burning up!" Her clammy hand found its way to the confused boy's forehead. "We should get you to the doctor, this is worse than I thought!"

Elphaba continued reading.

"What in Oz are you doing?" Fiyero asked through clenched teeth.

"Saving your popularity," Galinda replied, keeping her voice down. Then, without warning, she forced Fiyero's mouth open. Eyeing his throat, Galinda exclaimed, "Fiyero! Your throat, it's," she bit her lip, "very red and sore!"

"Are you sure?" He croaked.

"Don't talk, dearest!"

"But -"

"It's no wonder your voice was so," Galinda glanced at Elphaba, "horrendible!"

Elphaba grunted and walked away, nose still in her book.

When Galinda was sure the green girl was out of earshot, she let go of the oblivious Fiyero. "Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"That you can't sing!"

"I didn't think I had to sing."

"Fiyero!" Galinda moaned. "It's a musical!"

* * *

"Miss Elphaba must think I really am a blonde idiot!" Galinda had her head in her hands when she'd found her friends sat at their usual table in the hall. They were working on designing the set, though it was obvious nobody but Shenshen knew what they were doing.

"Miss Galinda, don't say such things," Shenshen cooed, pulling out a chair for the frazzled blonde. "Sit, and tell us what happened."

Galinda took a seat and recounted everything that occurred by the canal. "He said he didn't know there was singing involved!" She groaned.

"What are you going to do?" Milla asked.

"You girls are going to have to spread the rumor that he was sick." Galinda paused. "Oz, it's all my fault! I should never have made him sing in front of all of those people."

"You have the whole of Shiz wrapped around your little finger, Miss Galinda."

"Miss Milla is right, no one will question you," Shenshen agreed.

"You said you were going to teach him." Pfannee spoke for the first time.

Galinda looked up, remembering her earlier words. She'd been so determined. "He's a lost cause. Not even I could help him!"

"You could rewrite the songs so the prince doesn't sing?"

"But I spent so long on them!"

"Looks like we're canceled," Pfannee said under her breath.

"No!" Galinda cried out, stunning the group of girls. "I've worked too hard. We'll have to have auditions."

* * *

After a week of pasting posters around Shiz and convincing Morrible to let her use the lunch hall, Galinda was ready. Well, as ready as she could be. She was aware that she wouldn't have any chance of casting a prince anywhere near the standard of Fiyero - but that was irrelevant. As long as the new prince could sing without offending the audience, she would count it as an improvement. The auditions were set to take place after classes finished and she, Miss Greyling and Madame Morrible were overseeing them. Galinda would've preferred to do it alone, but Morrible insisted that she let them intervene, considering her poor first choices. However hard she tried to hide it, Galinda was embarrassed and hurt. This was supposed to be her production, she'd done most of the work, after all. Despite this, Galinda put on her brightest smile and flounced into the hall. Pfannee and Shenshen were already inside, bossing around a group of boys who were begrudgingly rearranging tables.

"Miss Galinda!" Shenshen called out, hurrying over to greet her.

"Miss Shenshen," Galinda said, briefly hugging the girl. "Where's Milla?"

"Oh, the poor girl was taken off by Morrible to organize the line."

"Move that one to the left!" Pfannee ordered. "And bring that smaller one over here!"

The boys sent each other irritated looks before hauling the table into the middle of the hall and setting it down with a crash. Galinda ran her fingers through her blonde curls and strutted forward. Exhausted boys dodged out of her way as she sat herself down at the newly positioned table.

"Miss Galinda," one especially sweaty boy said through heavy breaths, "I was wondering if-"

"Would one of you be a dear and fetch Madame Morrible for me?" Galinda asked, fluttering her eyelashes.

That was all it took for the whole group of boys to race out of the doors, some of them attempting to trip others up to slow them down.

"I hope they're not auditioning," Pfannee said as she walked up to the table. "Did you smell the one with the black hair?"

"Why did you think I got rid of them?" Galinda said, giggling as she rummaged around in her small white purse. She pulled out a pink notebook and frilly pen.

"Whatever's that for?" Shenshen peered over Galinda's shoulder.

"Miss Shenshen, this is a serious matter," Galinda said slowly. "I'll be forced to kiss the prince! I can't give the role to just anybody." She tapped the notebook with the end of her pen. "This is where I'll write down the good and bad things about each boy."

"Oh Miss Galinda, wonderful idea!"

"Stop it, you," Galinda said, blushing.

A few moments later, Morrible rumbled into the hall with Miss Greyling in tow. The large woman took the seat beside Galinda, a tad too close for the blonde's taste, but she didn't complain. With one last glance at her two friends, who were sitting at one of the tables behind her, Galinda took a shaky breath.

"Send the first one in!" Morrible's voice boomed out into the newly spacious lunch hall. Milla, who Galinda could see standing by one of the side doors, nodded timidly and disappeared for a moment. When the door reopened, Milla was replaced by a fair haired young man that Galinda recognized as Avaric Tenmeadows. He strode across the hall, the lop-sided smirk on his handsome face prompting muffled squeals from Pfannee and Shenshen.

"You called for a prince?" He raised an eyebrow. "Here I am."

"Yes, yes, Master Avaric. Get on with it." Morrible grumbled, jotting something down on a piece of paper.

What happened next made the lead in Madame Morrible's pencil snap and fly across the table. Avaric's voice was a shrill, high-pitched sound that almost reached the level of Pfannee and Shenshen's squeaking behind her. Galinda dropped her pen and gasped. Out of the corner of her eye she could make out the headmistress' jowls shaking. When Avaric hit his finishing note to feeble applause from Pfannee and Shenshen, Galinda sent him a forced smile.

"How... scandalacious, Master Avaric."

"That's one way of putting it," she heard Pfannee mutter from behind her.

Avaric bowed, taking a moment to wink at her, before making his way to the door. Galinda pouted, gazing down at the empty page in her book. She took a look around her, searching for the right words. Her eyes lit up and with newfound vigor, she wrote hastily on the page.

 _'Good: handsome, rich, tall. Bad: could break windows?'_

She set her pen down with a sigh just as Morrible called for the next boy. The door swung open to reveal Boq. Galinda's lips pursed. This was definitely Elphaba's doing! And after all the effort Galinda had put into not pestering the stupid green bean all week. Blood boiling, Galinda made her lips turn up into a twitching smile. "Biq."

"H-hello Miss Galinda!" The Munchkin boy shuffled into the hall, a redness to his cheeks. "And it's Boq."

"Begin whenever you're ready, Biq."

Boq audibly swallowed, unsure of what to do with his hands. He settled on standing with them at his sides and opened his mouth to start singing. Galinda felt her heart leap. Boq had the voice she'd imagined Fiyero would have. But her awe didn't last long. This meant Elphaba was right. Her hands fell to her lap, white fists clenching around the material of her dress. Boq must have seen the strained expression on her face because his voice faltered when her eyes met his. Surprisingly, Pfannee and Shenshen had kept quiet throughout his performance. The silence continued after he'd finished, leaving him a picture of nervousness. His hands fiddled with the buttons on his cardigan, his eyes boring holes in Galinda. Her nose scrunched up and she quickly began writing in her book.

 _'Good: a princely voice! Bad: BIQ!'_

Morrible dismissed him and he wandered off towards the door. Galinda finally started breathing again.

"He was very..." Shenshen started before she was harshly shushed by Pfannee.

Galinda hadn't noticed her fingernails digging into the table until Madame Morrible cleared her throat.

"Miss Galinda, is something the matter?" The headmistress' hard stare made Galinda snap out of her stupor.

"Oh! No! Nothing's the matter. Everything is perfectl-"

There was a bang and a crash and a bundle of bright color burst through the door, unannounced and unexpected. The figure turned out to be Crope. In a sparkly dress.

"What in Oz do you think you are doing?" Morrible turned a pale shade of green.

"Tibbett and myself both agreed that the musical could do with some," Crope explained, tapping his chin with his finger, "adjustments."

"Sweet Oz..." Shenshen murmured from her seat behind Galinda. The blonde was quickly becoming concerned that her friend was sick, judging by the noises she was making.

"We were sitting beside the canal when he put his hand upon my shoulder," Crope began, "'why does it have to be a prince?' he asked me."

"Master Crope!" Galinda turned red.

"So, with my good looks and Tibbett's eye for color, we designed this dress especially for me." He grinned. "And for your pleasure, Miss Galinda." Galinda felt her stomach flip.

"That's all well and good," Miss Greyling said, earning a glare from Morrible, "but are you a good enough singer?"

"Wait!" Galinda called out, regretting it as soon as she'd said it. "My prince can't wear a dress!"

"I'm a _princess,_ "Crope said, hands on hips.

"Well," Galinda crossed her arms, "a princess can't save a princess!"

Crope frowned. "And why not?"

"Because..." Galinda's shoulders slumped. She had a reason. Didn't she? She shook her head and tried to clear her mind. These ridiculous auditions were giving her a frightful migraine.

"Enough! Get on with it, Master Crope. I'm losing my patience." Morrible was pale, her hair standing on end in some places. The sight would have provided Galinda with a laugh if she didn't feel so uncomfortable.

To Galinda's surprise, Crope had a mesmerizing voice that sounded much like her own. She'd huffed and looked away, angry with the boy despite his obvious talent.

Miss Greyling applauded when he was finished. "Superb, Master Crope," the woman said between claps, "I dare say you could rival even Miss Galinda's voice."

Galinda snapped her head around at the mention of her name. Shenshen and Pfannee nearly fell out of their seats. "Excuse me?!"

"Thank you, Master Crope," Morrible interrupted swiftly. "You may send the next one in."

Crope blew a kiss to Galinda before disappearing out of the door. The blonde clenched her fists. This was probably Elphaba's doing too. She knew Elphaba was friendly with Crope and Tibbett. Somewhere the green abomination was cackling at Galinda's misfortune. Pen in hand, she began writing on the next page of her book.

 _'Good: a good voice... and that dress was very pretty.'_

She made a face and scribbled out the last part. She was supposed to be angry!

 _'Good: a good voice. Bad: it's all Elphaba's fault!'_

Satisfied, Galinda placed her pen down and awaited the next boy. The door opened again and Tibbett appeared, in a different colored dress. "I'm told Crope's dress didn't go down too well," he called out from across the hall, "it's a good thing I'm better looking than him."

Galinda leaned back in her chair as Tibbett sang, admiring the delicate tiara perched on his head. Morrible was rubbing her temples with both hands while Miss Greyling smiled at the clarity in his voice. After a moment, Galinda found herself getting lost in the melody. She certainly couldn't deny that both Tibbett and Crope were talented. She just didn't agree with their ideas.

"Before I leave may I just say, Miss Galinda, that the next one is an absolute piece of art-ichoke." Tibbett muttered the last word before hurrying out with a smirk on his face.

Galinda didn't often narrow her eyes, that was more something Elphaba would do. This time, though, she did. Something was off and she was feeling it in her stomach. Trying to ignore the butterflies, Galinda picked up her pen and scribbled down in her notebook.

 _'Good: a nice voice! Bad: suspicious behavior?'_

Out of the corner of her eye, Galinda could see Morrible checking her watch. With a sigh, the small blonde let herself relax back into her chair. Maybe she wasn't ready for this after all. Everything was going terribly wrong; the Munchkin boy seemed to be the only boy in Shiz with a suitable voice, the green monstrosity she shared a room with was being stubborn and would _not_ be won over easily, her perfect prince was cursed with perhaps the worst voice she had ever heard and now she had a throbbing headache and could only imagine what the humidity in the air had done to her poor hair.

Just as Galinda Upland was considering giving up and running back to her room, the door cracked open once again, to reveal a very sheepish looking Elphaba Thropp. She was a wearing an elaborate costume, presumably borrowed from Crope and Tibbett. It was a deep red tunic with golden buttons. Her hair was tied up, not in her usual braid, but in a bun and a purple cloak hung about her narrow shoulders. It was more than a little odd to see the green bean in colors other than black, grey and navy blue.

Pfannee was the first to kick up a fuss, spluttering out insults while Shenshen made vague noises of agreement beside her. Galinda was simply frozen, lips opening and closing but never making a sound. Elphaba had been adamant that she had no intention of participating in the musical, something which caused Galinda to refrain from approaching the green girl for a week, lest she set off her infamous temper. She couldn't help but wonder what had changed the green girl's mind. And why was she auditioning for the role of the prince? Galinda felt herself grow faint. The expression on Elphaba's face changed when she fully took in Galinda's reaction. It hardened and she marched across the hall, shoes tapping menacingly against the wooden floor.

"Miss Elphaba!" Galinda shrieked, finally regaining her voice. "Get out this instant!"

"You heard her, green bean!" Pfannee called out. "Leave!"

Elphaba didn't even blink. "Miss Galinda, correct me if I'm wrong, but you never specified whether the prince would be played by a male or a female."

The green girl's nonchalance only angered the blonde even more. Galinda sat up straight and swallowed her annoyance. She would handle this like a lady. "I thought it fairly obvious," Galinda said calmly, following it with a laugh and hoping Pfannee or Shenshen would chime in to defend her. "The prince should always be played by a boy!"

"And to think, the green freak is supposed to be smart!" Pfannee said, laughing.

Elphaba narrowed her eyes. "I have the frame of a man, or so you've told me."

"Well, obviously. Look at the way you wear those..." Galinda waved her hand towards the green girl, "clothes."

"If that is the case, Miss Galinda, then I don't think there should be a problem with me playing a man." Elphaba tucked her arms behind her back.

"That's not the point!" Galinda squealed, quickly losing her composure. "I can't - _won't_ \- kiss a girl! And especially not a green one!"

The hall fell into a painful silence and all Galinda could hear was drumming of her heart.

"Is the kiss _all_ you care about?" Elphaba asked after a moment, jaw clenching.

"It's an important part of the musical!" Galinda shot up from her seat, nearly toppling over.

"More important than the singing - or the acting?" Elphaba hissed, stepping forward.

"You're being impossible!"

"And _you're_ being insufferable!"

"That's enough!" Morrible interrupted, voice like thunder. "Miss Elphaba, are you planning on auditioning or are you intent on carrying on with this childishness?"

Elphaba locked eyes with Galinda one more time before straightening up and stepping back. Galinda smiled to herself as she settled back down into her chair. "That won't be necessary," she said coolly, "Miss Elphaba already has a part as the villain."

"The witch," Morrible exclaimed. "How could I have forgotten?"

Galinda watched as the green of Elphaba's face seemed to pale.

"I'll sing."

"What was that?" Morrible asked.

"This is an audition," Elphaba said, frowning, "so I will sing."

And that is what she did. Elphaba's voice was a haunting one. It was quiet and soft but as the song went on, grew until it was as large as the hall. Galinda couldn't and wouldn't believe her ears. She looked on at the sharp featured face of her room mate and wondered how she could invoke such a wonderful sound. It took the blonde some time to come back from her thoughts and really listen but by the time she did, Elphaba was finished. The gangly girl glared across the room at her, silently challenging the blonde to say something. Pfannee and Shenshen were shocked into an uncharacteristic silence and both Madame Morrible and Miss Greyling were muttering praise as they jotted things down on paper. With one more painfully long look towards Galinda, Elphaba turned on her heel and strode out of the hall, cloak billowing behind her. In that moment, Galinda knew for sure that Elphaba was the only one capable of being her witch. If only she wasn't so much like one in real life. Chewing her lip and not even thinking about how it would smudge her lipstick, Galinda began writing down her thoughts.

 _'Good: a voice quite impossible to describe. Bad: I loathe her!'_


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks again to everyone that continues to read this story and an especially big one to those of you who have left a review! Please stick around, the Gelphie-ness is coming soon!

Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

The list sat in front of her was a disappointment to say the least. To make matters worse, she was sure she had hideous bags under her eyes and for the first time in her short life, she dreaded looking at herself in the mirror. Galinda hadn't slept all night. She absolutely refused to take her eyes off her list of possible Princes until she decided on who to give the role to. It just so happened all of her options had at least one pitfall that could destroy all of her hard work. She sighed and shuffled her chair closer to her desk, not stopping until she could comfortably set her elbows down and rest her head in her hands. It wasn't long until a sleepy head of blonde curls dozed off.

When she woke up, the tiniest slither of sunlight creeping around the curtains, the green lump in the drab bed across the room was stirring. Galinda jumped up, knocking down a few of her carefully placed perfume bottles. Panicking, she didn't hesitate in throwing herself onto her delightfully pink bed, bouncing a bit from the force. She closed her eyes, parted her lips and pretended to be peacefully asleep.

"Miss Galinda?" She felt her heart skip a beat. "Miss Galinda!" The green girl was relentless. "I know you're not asleep."

Huffing, Galinda made herself sit up. "And how would you know?" Elphaba didn't have to say a word, she only pointed towards the stiff position the other girl was laying in. Galinda's cheeks turned bright red. "This is how I sleep."

Elphaba narrowed her dark eyes. "On your side, with your hand on your hip and your clothes still on?"

Galinda made a noise far too loud and obnoxious to be acceptable during the early hours of the morning. Her deliriously tired self hadn't even noticed that she was still wearing her dress from the day before. And her makeup! She must've looked like Madame Morrible. She launched herself out of bed to look in the mirror. What she saw was an awful mess and she found herself wanting to cry. Bottom lip quivering, she stormed into the bathroom and slammed the door.

When Galinda finally emerged, slamming the bathroom door again, Elphaba was dressed and sat on her bed reading another one of her boring books. "Well if you hadn't already woken all of Shiz, that certainly would have," she said, turning to the next page.

Galinda ignored the girl and instead went about her usual morning routine of choosing an outfit, doing her makeup and styling her hair. She always did prefer her mornings free of green freaks and their grating comments, which led her to wonder why Elphaba hadn't left the room yet. She always seemed to be gone whenever Galinda woke, which she was usually thankful for. The small blonde had chosen a delicate yellow frock to wear and was planning on searching for the matching colored heels when the question became too much. The incessant sound of pages turning and the occasional small noise of reaction from her room mate made her snap. "Could you do that somewhere else?"

Elphaba didn't show any sign of hearing her until a moment later when she lowered her book. "What is it that I'm doing?"

"You're making these," Galinda said, hesitating, "noises."

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "You were making noises too."

"Not annoying ones like you!" Galinda screeched, dumping her dress on her bed. Elphaba watched her and snorted. "What?!"

"You didn't seem to think the noises I made yesterday were 'annoying'."

"Whatever do you mean by that?"

"Nevermind." Elphaba picked up her book. Galinda was left standing in the middle of the room in tense silence as the green girl resumed reading.

After a painfully long moment, Galinda frowned. "Don't you usually go off to the library by now?"

"I do."

"Then why haven't you?"

"Miss Galinda," Elphaba started, though she was still reading, "if I'm not mistaken, this is _our_ room - not _yours_." Galinda was about to open her mouth to protest. "And in future, if you want to chastise me, try to do it without sounding like a petulant child yourself."

Galinda, dumbfounded, asked herself what the word 'petulant' meant a few times before wrinkling her nose and gathering up her dress. She stomped into the bathroom, not caring about the noise, and slammed the door for the third time that morning.

Elphaba didn't move from her position on her bed until she was ready to head for class. The bathroom door creaked open just as she was gathering her books and a fresh faced Galinda stepped out, blonde hair bouncing. She made sure to grab her purse and swiftly snatched up her notebook as she rummaged around on her desk.

Both girls rushed to the door, almost colliding. Elphaba grunted and stepped forward to turn the doorknob just as Galinda's heel caught on a frayed piece of carpet. The yellow-clad blonde hurtled forward towards the door, throwing out her arms and managing to catch herself on the wall before falling. Her notebook flew away from her grasp and fell, open, at Elphaba's feet. The green girl closed it as she picked it up, the ever present intensity in her eyes burning into Galinda as she stood up straight.

"Here," Elphaba muttered, thrusting the unsightly pink book at Galinda. "Take it."

"Yes. Thank you," Galinda managed to say as she grabbed it. Elphaba hand held it for a second, her unusually long green fingers brushing Galinda's knuckle when she eventually let go. The blonde bristled, a shiver running down her spine effectively shaking her.

Elphaba must have noticed because she sent the shorter girl a harsh look. "How many times must I tell you nitwits that it isn't contagious?"

"Miss Elphaba! I simply don't want to touch your - "

"Verdigris?" Elphaba said. "But Miss Galinda, according to you it could very well be my best feature. It's what makes me a monstrous villain. And isn't that what you want?"

Galinda's mouth formed a perfect 'o'. She clutched her notebook to her chest. "If you paid attention, Miss Elphaba, you would know that it isn't only your unfortunate... condition that makes you eligible for the role. Your attitude is fiendish and cruel!"

Elphaba frowned. "My dear Miss Galinda, if _you_ paid attention, you would notice that I am only ever fiendish and cruel to those that deserve it." She turned toward the door. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to class."

The green girl then stalked out of the room, leaving Galinda a red-faced mess. Her nails dug into the soft cover of her notebook, which was still grasped to her chest. She took a deep breath to calm herself and made her way to the door, wobbling slightly. Eyes heavy, she stepped out of the room and closed the door. It was a good thing Galinda and her friends didn't usually pay much attention in their classes; nothing would be out of the ordinary if she took a small nap during one of Doctor Dillamond's boring lectures.

* * *

When Galinda finally arrived to class, Elphaba was sat, pencil in hand, at her usual desk at the very front of the room. A few other students were dotted about the room, most of them chatting to friends or doodling absentmindedly in their books. A quick glance around the room told Galinda that her friends were yet to arrive and so she took a seat near the back, sitting down heavily and letting out a sigh. Soon, Pfannee and Shenshen walked in, whispering in each others ears. Shenshen caught sight of Galinda and seemed to be struggling to form a smile. The blonde suppressed a frown, knowing it would only give her wrinkles.

"Miss Galinda!" Shenshen called out, hurrying over to her desk.

"Good morning, Miss Shenshen," Galinda said, forcing a smile.

"At least _you_ can smile," Pfannee interrupted, wiggling into the chair beside Galinda, " _you_ haven't heard what they're saying."

Galinda almost dropped the pen she had been fiddling with. "What who are saying?"

"Everyone," Shenshen said, a nervousness in her voice.

"They know about the auditions," Pfannee said, pursing her lips.

"Well of course they do, we put up almost one hundred posters!" Galinda said, giggling. Then, her expression changed to one of panic. "We should take them down."

"No, Miss Galinda," Shenshen whispered. "They know how awful they were."

Galinda felt her heart skip and her stomach churn. "Oh. I see."

"Is that all you're going to say?" Pfannee asked, eyeing a group of girls across the classroom. They were pointing and not even attempting to be discreet.

Galinda noticed them too and huffed. "It isn't my fault that the boys at this school are atrocious singers!" It was true, the boys that auditioned after Boq and Elphaba were frightfully flat and had made Galinda's already pounding headache even worse. In fact, she had found herself feeling quite offended that the boys hadn't put more effort into impressing her.

"It isn't the _boys_ that are the problem," Pfannee spat.

Galinda glanced from the glowering Pfannee to Shenshen, whose mouth simply formed a straight line, devoid of emotion.

"Miss Elphaba," Galinda said through gritted teeth.

"She's had no trouble ruining things," Shenshen muttered, leaning forward a bit in case the green girl was listening.

"Was it her that spread it?" Galinda demanded.

Shenshen shook her head. "We're not sure. Miss Pfannee thinks the boys from Three Queens let it slip. It was them that put the green bean up to it."

"Those two are nothing but gossipers," Pfannee said, leaning back in her chair.

Galinda was ready to confront her villainous room mate right there and then, had Doctor Dillamond not entered the classroom. A few stragglers hurried through the door, prompting a disapproving head shake from the professor. Galinda watched him send a fond smile Elphaba's way before walking over to his desk. It wasn't long before the green girl encouraged him into another long, mundane lecture about something or other that only she ever found interesting. Unfortunately for her, it only fueled Galinda's irritation. The blonde's popularity was in jeopardy and she couldn't do a thing about it! Instead, she sat there, at the back of the classroom, flitting between anger and apprehension. She was in so much turmoil that she didn't even notice Fiyero saunter his way into the classroom until he looked at her, a sheepish smile on his face. Most of the room came back to life at the sight of the popular boy. Galinda felt slight resentment; her rumor about him being sick must have worked. If it hadn't, he would be just as much of a social outcast as Elphaba.

"Master Fiyero, good of you to join us at last," Doctor Dillamond said, gesturing for the boy to take a seat. He did so, in the chair in front of Galinda. The blonde felt Pfannee shift beside her and Doctor Dillamond resumed his ranting.

Class was over by the time Doctor Dillamond had answered Elphaba's question on his complicated views on The Wizard's treatment of Animals. He dismissed them and hurried off, claiming he had some important business to attend to. Students got up from their chairs, most of them quietly complaining to their friends and glaring at the oblivious Elphaba. She was still sat down, jotting notes down in a little black book.

Fiyero loudly scraped his chair back as he stood up and stretched like a cat. "So, Galinda," he said, turning to her as she got up from her seat. "Any luck finding your Prince?" This garnered the unwanted, at least on Galinda's part, attention of the rest of the room. Students eager to leave paused, waiting for her reply. Elphaba continued to write in her book, though Galinda could've sworn she noticed the green girl flinch a little at Fiyero's question.

"A lady never tells," Galinda said quickly.

"Yes, of course," Fiyero said, a strange look on his face. "I did hear of something rather odd, though."

Galinda wanted to run away, out of the classroom. Maybe out of Shiz altogether. Or just out of Oz entirely! Her heart felt just about ready to burst from her chest and she was gradually becoming aware of the many pairs of curious eyes on her. Galinda Upland would normally revel in such attention, but today it felt different. And in no way good.

"And what was that, Master Fiyero?" Galinda asked, wanting to get the humiliation over with.

Fiyero smirked. "That a girl auditioned."

The still room burst into gasps and stifled laughter and Galinda fought the urge to frown. Everybody already knew! Surely they'd already had their laugh at her expense. She picked up her notebook and purse and straightened her posture. Pfannee and Shenshen exchanged nervous glances, stepping away from the blonde.

Fiyero looked around the room. "That isn't the only thing," he said, turning his head back to Galinda. "Rumor has it Boq tried out."

Galinda widened her eyes. "Who?"

"The little Munchkin boy that follows you around," Fiyero said. "I don't blame you for not remembering. There isn't much to remember." There were a few titters about the classroom at that. "He could never fill my shoes." Fiyero grinned. "His feet aren't big enough!"

Raucous laughter spilt into the room and movement resumed, students sitting down on desks and moving chairs. Galinda's face flushed. She took a frantic look around and saw that Pfannee and Shenshen weren't by her side anymore, but stood giggling with a group of boys behind Fiyero. She puffed out her cheeks, desperately trying to hold in the unfamiliar mixture of emotions. She felt like crying her eyes out but she also wanted to slap Fiyero and give her friends a telling off. And Elphaba - well - Galinda wanted to say a lot of things to her. The green girl was the only one in the classroom not joining in. She still sat in her stiff position, back straight, arms awkwardly sat on the table as she took notes. She wasn't writing now, though. She was listening, and laughing, probably. Galinda's bottom lip trembled.

"I apologize, Galinda," Fiyero said out of nowhere. "I didn't mean to insult you. I'm certain Boq will make a fabulous Prince," Fiyero, and the room paused, "once he grows up." More laughter, and Galinda could barely take it. Her sleep deprived mind could hardly think straight. She heard Pfannee and Shenshen laugh along with everyone else. How could they have turned on her so easily? It was only a week ago they were fawning over her ideas and complimenting her every move.

"So that's why your singing voice was so terrible," a new voice spoke up, "your head is stuck too far up your backside for anyone to hear you properly."

The classroom was silent, heads turned to Elphaba, who had closed her book and was tucking it into her pocket. Galinda bit her lip and eyed the green girl as she awkwardly stood up from her chair. She stood perfectly still for a moment, as if she were anticipating a comeback from Fiyero. Galinda hadn't looked to him for a reaction yet. When she finally did tear her gaze from Elphaba, she was rewarded with a stunned yet hurt expression not unlike the one he had sported on the day by the canal. Galinda smiled to herself.

"I..." Fiyero mumbled, eyes wide.

Elphaba's comment must have earned her desired reaction because she strode out of the classroom in one fell swoop, without saying another word and without looking back. Galinda could only dream she was as strong as the green girl. She certainly _was_ tempted to follow all, she had nothing left to lose. Unfortunately there were still some eyes on her, obviously expecting her to say something. Galinda looked from Fiyero, who was still in a state of shock and embarrassment and Pfannee and Shenshen - who looked as though they'd both been slapped.

"Rehearsals begin Friday!" Galinda said, fluttering her eyelashes. With that said, she dashed out of the room like a ball of yellow energy. She would've preferred to say it was from excitement, but it was really from horrendous embarrassment. Galinda hoped nobody noticed her bright red face as she rushed out of the room. Red and yellow did tend to clash.

Galinda did try to look graceful while running in heels but she wasn't sure such a thing was possible. Fortunately for her, the halls were fairly empty and she didn't need to try too hard. The _real_ hard part was finding Elphaba. The girl was green and tended to sour the air wherever she went; it shouldn't have been so hard to find her! Galinda frowned as she turned a corner, almost smashing into somebody. That somebody turned out to be Avaric. His usual arrogant smile appeared on his lips as he caught her arms and straightened her up.

"I'm used to girls throwing themselves at me, but never quite so literally," he said, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't have the for your charms," Galinda huffed. "I need to find Miss Elphaba!"

"Don't tell me she got the part," Avaric whined. "Losing to a green bean could very well send me into hiding."

Galinda pursed her lips, of course Avaric was poking fun at her too. Her heart sank. She was Shiz's latest laughing stock. In the end, she decided to play along, hoping it would make the sting of embarrassment hurt less. "Oh, please! I doubt it."

He grinned. "You're right. I wouldn't want to be responsible for so many broken hearts."

"Have you seen her?" Galinda urged.

"I did see her stomp into Crage Hall. I must warn you though, she looked positively steamed."

Galinda pouted. "When doesn't she?"

"You'd know better than I."

"I should hurry! Thank you, Master Avaric!" She then turned on her heel and rushed back down the hall, in the direction of Crage Hall. She couldn't deny she found it odd that Elphaba would return to their room and not the library. She'd always thought of the library as the green girl's sanctuary. Perhaps Elphaba wanted Galinda to find her and that was why. She felt a strange combination of delight and annoyance at the thought.

After making herself run up the stairs, Galinda's already tired legs were failing her and she collapsed into the dorm room. The door slammed as she faltered and toppled over. One of her expensive yellow heels snapped off and flew across the carpeted floor, landing just next to Elphaba's foot.

"Oh! Miss Elphaba!" Galinda wheezed. "Fancy seeing you here!"

Elphaba grunted and moved onto her bed, taking out the black book she'd been writing in and flicked through it. Galinda watched her out of the corner of her eye as she picked herself up, hobbling over to her side of their shared room, setting down her purse and notebook on her desk and plopping herself onto her bed. Her legs kicked out to free her sore feet of her broken heels. Then, with a contented sigh that was much louder than she intended, the blonde let herself fall back onto bouncy pink heaven. She let her arms fall down to each side of her head and closed her eyes.

Galinda should've known better than to expect Elphaba to initiate conversation. Her nose was still stuck in her book a couple of moments later. Galinda pouted and carefully shifted onto her side, eyes slightly closed but still staring at the green girl. Unconsciously, she started bobbing up and down on her soft mattress, never taking her gaze off of her room mate. Elphaba eventually snapped and slammed her hands, and book, down onto her lap. Galinda, startled, widened her blue eyes and nearly rolled off the side of her bed.

"Is there something you need to say?" Elphaba asked, clearly irritated. Avaric had been right, the vegetable was steamed; perhaps over-cooked.

"If you were to ask nicely, then yes," Galinda replied, nose in the air. But when she saw the fury in Elphaba's eyes, she regretted it immediately. "I only wanted to say thank you, for earlier."

"You can thank me all you want," Elphaba said, bringing her book back up to eye level, "but I didn't do it for you."

Taken aback by the disappointment she felt at the green girl's harsh honesty, Galinda bit her lip. "You did it for Biq."

"Boq."

"What?"

"Nevermind," Elphaba said, rolling her eyes.

"Are you two good friends?" Galinda asked, rolling onto her stomach and leaning her head in her hands. Maybe forcing the conversation to continue was a bad idea. The blonde cringed when she saw Elphaba's frown deepen behind her book, yet she took the chance anyway.

"I wouldn't call him a friend," the green girl mumbled.

"Would he call you one?"

"How should I know?"

"Well," Galinda started, sitting up and dangling her legs over the edge of the bed, "if he were a friend he would compliment you and support you! Does he make an effort to talk to you or eat lunch with you each day?"

Elphaba scoffed. "I might not know much about friendship, but even I know not to take advice from you."

"Excuse me?"

"The Misses Pfannee and Shenshen weren't exactly 'supportive' today, now were they?"

Galinda bristled. "They had their reasons, I'm sure."

"Reasons like 'Miss Galinda isn't popular anymore so we should abandon her'?" Elphaba teased.

Galinda crossed her arms across her chest. "Who says I'm not popular?!"

"Everyone, so it seems," Elphaba said flatly.

"Only because of you and Biq!"

"You're the one that wanted me in your childish story."

"As the villain! Not the Prince!" Galinda threw her hands up to hide her face. "I'm ruined!" She felt the sting of tears and soon they were falling down her cheeks.

"Sweet Oz, are you crying?" Elphaba asked, disgusted.

Galinda continued to sob, every emotion from the day overwhelming her. "I don't have a Prince, or a witch - or anything!" She sniffed. "You auditioned to torment me and now everyone thinks I'm a joke!"

"A joke is meant to be funny," Elphaba said, going back to her reading, "this is just sad."

Galinda glared at the green girl through her fingers. "Then help me! Agree to take part!

"Never."

"Please!"

"No."

"What if..." Galinda hesitated, heart hammering in her chest. "What if I make Biq the Prince?"

Elphaba narrowed her eyes. "And risk your perfect reputation even more?"

"Apparently, I don't have much of one anymore," Galinda said, scrunching her nose.

The blonde girl watched as Elphaba seemed to ignore her in favor of her little black book. That was, until she closed it slowly and looked her straight in the eye.

"Fine," she hissed, "just don't try and make me enjoy it."

Galinda leapt up from her bed, tears forgotten, though her smeared makeup would phase her later on. A high pitched scream escaped her lips and she was a ball of hysterical joy. She even considered hurling herself onto Elphaba's ugly bed to hug the green girl, something that would've made her skin crawl a week ago. But at that moment - she was beyond caring. She had her Prince, a little shorter than she would've liked, but most importantly, she had her witch - her green villain. Surely that would restore her popularity? Twirling on the spot, she didn't quite catch the small hint of a smile on a certain green girl's lips.


	4. Chapter 4

Wow, okay. I've been sick for over a week and it took a lot for me to force myself to write this chapter. I have some better, more plot advancing ideas for the next chapter I promise! But for now, here is a bit more Gelphie interaction. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

Elphaba wasn't a monster. Which seemed difficult for some students at Shiz to comprehend. The green girl was used to the disgusted looks they gave her and the whispered insults, but ever since she had begrudgingly agreed to take part in Galinda's silly musical, the other students' collective contempt for her had only grown stronger. As always, she ignored them by keeping her face hidden in a book at all times. On this particular day, she was reading a book recommended by Doctor Dillamond himself. Her thumb and index finger twitched as she prepared to turn the page. Boq was supposed to be meeting her by the apple tree so they could walk to rehearsal together. He was running late. The Munchkin boy was likely still preparing himself for a whole hour with Galinda, something that Elphaba herself wasn't ready for either - but for different reasons. She absolutely did not want Galinda to misunderstand her taking part in the musical as them being _friends_. Though for some reason she couldn't and didn't want to understand, the total unadulterated giddiness Galinda had shown when Elphaba agreed to take the part had made the green girl smile. Unfortunately it wasn't enough to stop her from thinking the girl was a superficial snob the rest of the time.

The only time the two roommates had spoken more than a few words to each other in the past two days was when Galinda threatened to throw a tantrum if Elphaba didn't go with her to talk to Boq. The two of them found him by the canal and after an awkward conversation, with Elphaba correcting Galinda's pronunciation of his name twice, the boy blushed furiously and proceeded to try and hug Galinda. She had squealed at the contact and pulled away, much to Avaric's amusement.

Elphaba read four more pages before Boq appeared by her side, hands in his pockets and a pinkness to his cheeks. She sighed and closed her book. "Master Boq."

He smiled shyly. "Miss Elphaba."

"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten."

"I'm sorry... I was fixing my hair."

Elphaba narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"My hair, it was a mess," he said, looking down at his feet.

"Since when have you cared about things like that?"

Boq shrugged. "I just thought I should make an effort, that's all."

"It sounds like Miss Galinda has rubbed off on you already," Elphaba muttered, getting up and slipping her book into her pocket. Boq blushed and the two of them began walking in the direction of the lunch hall.

"So, are you excited?"

"Ecstatic," Elphaba replied, considering taking out her book just to save herself from Boq's attempts at small talk.

Boq shook his head, looking up at his green companion. "You didn't have to agree to this, you know. Miss Galinda would've found someone else to play the witch."

"Did she say that to you?"

Boq bit his lip. "Um... no." Elphaba glared at him. "But I'm certain she would have!"

"Master Boq, unless Miss Galinda somehow found another green person, she would have never stopped bothering me about it."

"I suppose so," he mumbled.

Elphaba was silently thankful that Boq didn't say anything else as they walked. Her stomach was filled to the brim with butterflies, which was stupid, in her opinion. She'd dealt with worse things during her time at Shiz, most of them also involving Galinda Upland. She took a small intake of breath as the pair approached the lunch hall. Thinking it pointless to delay the inevitable embarrassing entrance any longer, Elphaba ignored Boq's hesitation and walked right in.

To an empty hall. Until she took a closer look and caught sight of Galinda, sitting in her prim and proper way on a chair in the middle of the room, along with Milla and a bored looking Avaric. She felt Boq rush in behind her, the door creaking until it eventually shut with a bang. Months rooming with Galinda had taught Elphaba a lot of things. And one of them was that the smile the blonde girl wore as Elphaba and Boq made their way over to the small group, was fake.

The blonde jumped up from her chair, clapping her hands. "You came!"

"We did," Boq said, his face already flushing.

"I didn't think we had a choice in the matter," Elphaba muttered, stiffly picking up a chair for herself.

Galinda puffed out her cheeks. "You don't have to be such a sourpuss."

"Hello, Master Boq," Milla said, raising a timid hand.

"Miss Milla," he replied, nodding toward her. He tried to take a seat next to Galinda, on the chair Avaric had his feet propped up on.

"Get your own," the taller boy said lazily.

Elphaba set her chair down beside Galinda. "I didn't expect to see you here, Master Avaric."

"I didn't expect to be here myself. Miss Galinda begged me, though. She was down on her knees, how could I resist?"

Boq scraped a chair across the floor, a frown on his face. He managed to squash himself into the space between Avaric and Milla. "So... where is everyone else?"

"What do you mean 'everyone else'? Everyone is here! Everything is perfect!" Galinda cried out. "What a silly question."

"There are only five characters?" Elphaba asked, frowning.

"Yes!" Galinda replied, fiddling with some sheets of paper. "The Princess, the Prince, the Witch," she hummed as she thumbed through the papers, "the Farmer and the Milkmaid."

"And they all sing?" Avaric asked, sitting up straight.

"Oh, yes," Galinda said. "Well, they will do... when I change this part," she held up a piece of paper, "and this bit, here."

Elphaba glowered at her. "You have no idea what you're doing, do you?"

The blonde scrunched up her nose, offended. "Here is the script." She handed the pile of paper to Elphaba. "I think you'll find I know exactly what it is I'm doing."

Elphaba shook her head and took one of the stapled together scripts before passing the pile to Avaric. Adjusting her glasses a little, the green girl opened it up to the first page, which was an ugly mess of red scribbles and notes over originally neatly written dialogue and stage directions. Both of them in Galinda's handwriting.

"All of these scribbles say otherwise," Elphaba pointed out.

Galinda looked down at her own script. "I may have made a few _artistic_ changes."

Elphaba grunted. The other three hadn't spoken a word and Galinda's anxious eyes kept glancing up from her script to their faces. A girl desperate for approval, was what Elphaba saw. Galinda must have been so used to being accepted no matter what. Pfannee and Shenshen never seemed the type to question the girl. Elphaba pulled her gaze away from the blonde and began reading through the first page.

The Witch was terrorizing the Farmer - burning crops, scattering animals, destroying his house. But by far the strangest part was that she was riding a broomstick, of all things. Elphaba's frown deepened as she continued reading. Galinda had added a stage direction in red pen. ' _Cackling madly_.' Avaric let out a laugh and it didn't take Elphaba long to understand that he was at the same part as she was.

"A broomstick?" He laughed again. "I was led to believe she was a witch, not a maid."

"I thought it would make her look striking," Galinda countered, earning a smirk from Avaric. "Well, _more_ striking."

"And the 'mad' cackling?" Elphaba hissed.

Galinda widened her eyes. "That's what witches do!"

"Says the pretty blonde from Gillikin," Elphaba murmured.

"Pardon?"

"How will Miss Elphaba ride the broomstick?" Boq questioned, inching his chair forward.

Galinda's face lit up. "Why, she'll be suspended up in the air of course!"

Elphaba snapped her head up. "What?!"

"I never mentioned that, did I?" The blonde giggled. "Silly me."

"You mean to kill me," Elphaba hissed.

Galinda jumped up and cried out, "We should practice it now!"

"I can wait to find out what it's like to be strung up on a broomstick and made a fool out of, if that's all right with you."

"I didn't mean that!" Galinda bounced on the spot. "I meant we should recite our lines! Master Avaric, stand up please!" Avaric got to his feet. "Now," Galinda said, hands on hips, "try to look more... farmer-like."

Milla, Boq and Elphaba watched as Avaric untucked his shirt, ran a hand through his hair and slouched his shoulders. That seemed to please Galinda, who beamed before turning her attention back to Elphaba.

"Miss Elphaba," Galinda announced, straightening up and pointing to the space beside Avaric. Elphaba hesitantly stood up, wishing she had that broomstick to fly away on. "Now... do that face you always do." Elphaba fixed her with a cold stare, prompting Galinda to clap her hands. "That's it!" Both Avaric and Elphaba looked from one another back to Galinda. "Oh, and pretend that you're flying."

Elphaba clenched her fists, but decided not to argue. It was becoming clear that Galinda was taking the musical far more seriously than she had ever taken anything else, including her studies. No matter how much Elphaba hated the girl's blissful ignorance and air-headedness, she couldn't deny the amount of hard work the girl had put into it.

Arms stiffly glued to her sides, Elphaba waited for Avaric to say his line. Every time she glanced at him, his eyes were skimming through the muddled script. Boq and Milla were still seated, reading through their own scripts. The only sound was the occasional sigh from an impatient Galinda.

"Why is it taking so long?" she eventually snapped.

Avaric looked up from his script, smiling. "I apologize, but I can't seem to find the line."

Galinda turned to face him. "It shouldn't be so difficult."

"Well it does look like a small child doodled all over the script," Elphaba pointed out.

"Ah, found it," Avaric chimed in. He stooped down and cried, " _Oh no! My crops!_ "

Elphaba stifled a laugh. That was really the best Galinda could come up with? Maybe she had given the girl too much credit. Maybe Galinda Upland did have the intelligence of a blade of grass. Maybe agreeing to take part in this musical charade was the worst thing Elphaba had ever done - other than exist, of course.

She realized, after a brief but uncomfortable moment of Galinda and Avaric staring at her, that she needed to say the next line. " _Now the kingdom will be without food_ \- wait, one farmer provides the entire kingdom with food? That is not possible."

"It's a very small kingdom!" Galinda argued. "And a very large farm."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. " _Now the kingdom will be without food and the Princess will die_ ," she said in a monotonous voice.

Galinda frowned. "You need to sound threatening! Not... whatever that was."

"It's hard to make such an absurd line sound threatening. Couldn't the witch find some other, better, way to kill the Princess instead of starving her to death?"

Avaric nodded. "It is rather pathetic."

"She's a sorceress, isn't she?" Boq said quietly, his eyes flicking from the script to Galinda and back again, as if she were a lion poised to attack. "She could use that to kill the Princess instead?"

"She's not supposed to kill the Princess!" Galinda shouted, hands on hips. "If she killed the Princess there wouldn't be a story."

"I'm starting to think that would be the preferred option," Elphaba said. Though she regretted her harsh tone when she saw Galinda's shoulders slump ever so slightly. It wasn't often that Elphaba found herself feeling guilty over her treatment of her insufferable roommate, but when she did, she tried her best to ignore it and push the feeling away. She did that a lot - too much, perhaps.

Galinda looked like she'd been struck, her confident pose faltered and she let her arms drop to her sides. "Rehearsals are over for today," she mumbled, just loud enough for the rest of them to hear.

Boq hurried to his feet, reaching out to Galinda as she gathered up the scripts. "But we only just started!" he cried. Galinda shrugged.

Avaric was the first to leave. After a moment, Milla tugged on Boq's sleeve and he reluctantly left with her - though not without a disappointed look towards Elphaba. The green girl hadn't moved a muscle. She'd been frozen into place like a green statue, her script still clasped in her hand.

The door slammed shut after Boq and Milla and Galinda stepped closer to Elphaba, grabbing the green girl's script and snatching it out of her hand. Blue eyes didn't meet brown ones. The blonde head of curls didn't even look up. Galinda held the pile of papers close to her chest and after standing in front of Elphaba for a few seconds, she turned and began making her way to the door, heels clacking noisily on the floorboards.

"Wait, Miss Galinda!" Elphaba called out. She wouldn't have minded disappearing when Galinda turned to face her, makeup streaming black trails down her cheeks. The sight of her usually stuck-up roommate and supposed mortal enemy crying again should have stirred up feelings of satisfaction in Elphaba, but she found herself feeling nothing of the sort. In its place, she was feeling the same kind of discontent she had felt when Fiyero insulted Boq in front of the entire class.

The smaller girl sniffled. "You really earned the role, Miss Elphaba."

"I didn't mean what I said."

Galinda wrinkled her nose. "Yes, you did!"

"Maybe some of it," Elphaba said and took a step forward. "I'm sorry if I upset you."

"Upset me?" Galinda hurriedly wiped at her eyes. "I'm not upset!"

Elphaba's mouth twitched. "I was meaning to ask you - did you write the whole script yourself?"

Galinda very nearly dropped the pile of scripts she was holding. "Is this some kind of trick so you can make fun of me again?"

"It would be if you weren't crying."

Galinda scoffed. "I'm only crying because I got a paper cut. I assume even you know how painful they are..." she trailed off.

"Painful enough to ruin your makeup?"

Galinda blinked and said, "Oh! You know, sometimes I hate wearing this all the time." That surprised Elphaba and even Galinda looked a little taken aback by her own honesty.

"I don't know why girls even bother with it," Elphaba said.

"You don't," Galinda whispered, "and you're a girl."

"Biologically, yes." Galinda sent her a puzzled look. "And besides, what kind of makeup could I possibly wear? It would hardly take away from the green."

"Oh, I don't know. I'm certain I could figure something out, I've been wearing makeup since I was twelve years old!"

"Why?" Elphaba asked, genuinely curious.

Galinda shrugged. "I suppose it was expected of young girls in the Gillikin. All of my friends at home wore it, too." The blonde seemed to drift off into thought. "One of my old friends from Frottica would have been overjoyed to work on this musical with me." She smiled slightly. "She played the piano. We'd sing together and put on little shows for our parents during the summer."

Elphaba pushed her glasses back up to the bridge of her sharp nose. "I really am sorry about what I said before." She made herself grimace. "You should have cast me as a tree. I would cause considerably less trouble as inanimate plant life."

Galinda shook her head. "And waste your singing voice? I don't think so!"

Elphaba flushed, remembering the audition. It embarrassed her to even think back on it, Oz knew how it made Galinda feel. An awkward green girl auditioning for the role of a heroic Prince in a school musical? The joke wrote itself. It had been over a week and students were still gossiping about it, or more specifically - about how it had stripped Galinda of her title as the most popular girl at Shiz University. Elphaba had heard many rumors about her blonde roommate, most of which she _knew_ weren't true. She even felt compelled to defend her at times but never did.

The latest rumors were that the musical production was going horribly, something which Elphaba had to admit she couldn't argue with. The first rehearsal didn't exactly run smoothly and the turn out had managed to make even Elphaba, the green girl with no friends, feel humiliated. She suspected Pfannee and Shenshen were behind the shameful attendance. Boq had agreed that the two of them were more than capable of scheming against Galinda. They'd been perfectly content with abandoning their friend at the first sign of danger to their reputation.

Silence made the hall seem larger and the way Galinda was looking at her made Elphaba want to flee, not for the first time. The blonde was smiling and to Elphaba it looked and felt natural. She cleared her throat, wondering if she should attempt to smile back. She hadn't had all that much experience with people smiling at her - not at her childhood home at Colwen Grounds or at Shiz. Most people could barely stomach looking at her, let alone smile at her. And the ones that did were usually making fun.

A bit of contemplation later and Elphaba decided against it. She didn't wish to further prove Galinda's point that she was an ugly, monstrous beast.

She watched, equally amused as she was flustered when Galinda pulled a handkerchief out of her cleavage and wiped at her eyes with it. The shorter girl looked at her out of the corner of her eye. "Oh, don't mind me. This dress doesn't have pockets so I'm forced to use other... means," she said, biting her lip. She slipped the piece of cloth back into her dress and Elphaba averted her eyes, cheeks flushed dark green. "Have you heard the rumors about me?"

The question was so out of the blue that Elphaba widened her eyes. She should've known Galinda would ask her about such things, she was one of the few people Galinda _could_ talk to now. And naturally, she wanted to talk about juvenile gossip. The blonde was observing her, silently pleading with her to speak.

"Yes, a few of them - but they're a load of nonsense. The same things were said about me and probably still are."

Galinda grimaced. "I have a feeling I was the one that started most of those."

Elphaba simply shrugged. "You wouldn't be the first person to do such a thing."

"You'd think Miss Pfannee and Miss Shenshen would come up with something original," Galinda whined. "Yesterday I heard the rumor that I don't wear a bra! I made that up about you at the beginning of the year!" She blushed. "Sorry."

"I assume you would actually have to wear a bra to be offended by that."

Galinda's flushed face reddened even more. "You really don't wear one?"

"I don't think there would be much of a point, do you?" Elphaba said, gesturing to her chest. Galinda averted her eyes, her fingers absentmindedly fiddling with the corners of the jumble of papers she was holding.

The tense silence slipped back into the conversation to remind Elphaba why she spent more time with books than she did people. Specifically a certain pretty blonde that always managed to make Elphaba angry, nervous and more recently - a bit of both.

"When I made those rumors up," Galinda started, her voice barely above a whisper, "I don't think I thought about how they would make you feel." She sighed. "I don't think about a lot of things."

"Miss Galinda, I've been accused of far worse things than not wearing undergarments."

"I know!" Galinda looked down. "But some of the other things I spread around about you were more... unfair."

"Life is unfair."

"You're very gloomy!"

"Growing up with green skin does that."

Galinda parted her lips to speak, but Elphaba could see her change her mind. Her mouth closed into a small smile. "I did write the script myself."

"Hm?"

"To answer your earlier question." The blonde patted the pile of scripts with her hand. "I wrote all of it!"

Elphaba held her tongue. She knew she was about to say something scathing and rude, she couldn't help it - it was second nature by now. However, the gentle smile on her roommate's face made her soften her frown and her words. "I thought so."

Galinda stared up at her, the tiniest hint of a smirk on her lips. "What happened to that attitude of yours?"

"I was considering offering you some constructive criticism, but if you'd prefer for me to be brutally honest then I am happy to do that too."

The playful look on Galinda's face disappeared. "Oz, for a second there I thought you could be fun to talk to!"

"'Fun' isn't a word I'd ever associate with myself," Elphaba said, shaking her head.

"You think it's stupid."

"I read one page. I can't really judge."

Galinda's eyes brightened. "Would you read it with me?" However much Elphaba would have preferred to refuse and rush off to the library, to read a _proper_ story that made sense, she nodded and followed Galinda to sit at one of the tables. "You know a lot about books, don't you?" Galinda tossed her hair before sitting down and crossing her legs. "More than I do!"

Elphaba sat down beside her. "I read more about real-life than fiction." Galinda's face fell. "But I do know a good story from a bad story. I was told enough of them when I was a child."

"By your parents?" Galinda asked, smiling.

Elphaba gave her a look. "By my Nanny."

"Oh," Galinda squeaked. She kept quiet after that, flicking through the collection of scripts and occasionally peeking at Elphaba out of the corner of her eye. "Here." The blonde handed Elphaba the scripts, keeping one of her own.

"Would it have killed you to write it out without all the scribbling?" Elphaba complained, scowling at the untidiness of the first page. "I would have thought someone like you would have neat handwriting."

Galinda turned her head. "Someone like me?" Elphaba didn't say anything. "And, Miss Elphaba, you should know I almost died while writing these! My hand was numb for the rest of the day! Miss Pfannee told me to go to the infirmary, it was that bad!"

"Because we both know Miss Pfannee's opinion is so valuable," Elphaba muttered, trailing her finger along the first line in the script. She skimmed through the opening scene, inwardly groaning at the nonsensical dialogue.

Galinda looked up from the page. "So?"

"So what? I already gave you my opinion on this part."

"Yes," Galinda said, leaning her arms on the table, "but it wasn't very helpful."

Elphaba frowned. "There isn't much to say other than it's ridiculous."

Galinda huffed. "What's wrong with it, then?"

"Other than the boring dialogue, confusing stage directions and the fact that you expect me to ride a flying broomstick?" Galinda made a face. "You should use the first scene as an introduction, like a book would. This just comes across as you trying too hard to be dramatic," Elphaba said, tapping the page with a long finger. Galinda stared at her, groaned so loudly that it echoed through the hall and let her head fall forward onto the table. Elphaba glanced at her, irritated. "I suppose I'll just move on and read Scene Two then, shall I?" Galinda made a strange noise that Elphaba chose to take as a yes. She turned the page and read through the entrance of the Princess with wide eyes. "Miss Galinda?"

Galinda abruptly raised her head, making the table shake slightly. "Yes?"

"It says here that the Princess travels around the kingdom in a bubble."

Galinda grinned. "Yes!"

"That's stupid."

The blonde looked wounded for a second, until she sat up straight and said, "Well it's better than riding around on a dirty old broom!"

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "You wrote that."

Elphaba watched Galinda sulk and set her chin on her hands, gazing up at the window above them. It was getting dark, the sky bordering on purple. Galinda yawned and sat up, crinkling up her script which was spread out underneath her arms.

"I'm going to the library," Elphaba said suddenly.

"What?" Galinda followed Elphaba with her eyes as the green girl got up from her seat.

"The place with the books."

"I know what the library is." Galinda crossed her arms. "But we aren't finished here. You have to read Scene Three, it's quite exciting!"

Elphaba grimaced. "I can imagine." She leaned down and folded her script before sliding it across the table towards Galinda. "Meet me here during lunch tomorrow and I'll continue reading."

"And criticizing," Galinda mumbled.

"That too."

There was a bang, a creak and a crash and a group of boys bustled into the hall, just as Elphaba had predicted. She never liked being around so many noisy, obnoxious people and the hall was always crowded during the evenings. Her eyes travelled from the boys, who surprisingly paid her no mind, back to Galinda. The blonde was gathering up the scripts, a nervousness in her movements. Elphaba felt she should say something else before leaving, though she wasn't entirely sure what.

She had planned to spend the night reading in the library, away from the blonde girl. And so she simply said, "Good night, Miss Galinda." Then hurried off, having already pulled her book out of her pocket.


	5. Chapter 5

This chapter is quite a bit longer than previous chapters, I hope you like it! Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

As soon as Madame Morrible finished another one of her vexing sorcery lectures, Galinda hastily made her way to lunch. It was odd, she'd never seemed to rush anywhere back when he reputation was fully in tact. The most popular girl at Shiz was always the one to set the pace - to wander to and from class at a leisurely pace, most likely due to excessive gossiping about the newest reason to shun Elphaba. But Galinda didn't have her friends or her popularity anymore and so she'd began hurrying her way around the school, trying to hide herself from the students that had once adored her. It didn't take her long to figure out that such a thing wouldn't happen, not now she was as much of a social exile as Elphaba was.

Despite herself, Galinda had been helplessly looking forward to her meeting with said green bean, though she didn't particularly know why. It was only a week ago that she'd despised her roommate and wanted nothing more than to humiliate her in front of the whole of Shiz. Now though, Galinda was involuntarily warming up to her. There was something strange - stranger than her verdigris - about Elphaba that drew Galinda in. And now that the two were acting moderately civil towards the other, she was growing more and more interested in everything that Elphaba Thropp _was_. However, that unfamiliar yet intriguing feeling didn't change the fact that they were complete opposites and still preferred to interact in the form of verbal sparring rather than normal conversation. She wasn't even sure they could ever be more than reluctant acquaintances. It appeared to Galinda that Elphaba didn't want friends, even if she _was_ capable of making them. The blonde herself wasn't sure what it was that she wanted from her roommate. In fact Galinda had spent most of the previous night tossing and turning, beating herself up over having such low standards. The green bean was making _her_ feel this way! It was almost comical. Elphaba, a potential friend? Months ago she would have laughed hysterically and swatted the idea away. But now she was seriously considering the possibility, albeit with some pause.

Galinda clasped her purse tightly to her breast when she stepped into the hall, her eyes carefully looking over the tables of students. With no sign of Elphaba, Galinda let out a sigh and wandered over to the table at the back of the hall, by the window she liked. She took a seat and hoped she wouldn't be stood up by the one person she could still talk to in the whole of Shiz.

Her bare legs trembled underneath the table. What if she was noticed? She berated herself for agreeing to meet Elphaba here, where everyone could see them. And she just had to be the first one to show up! Elphaba must have forgotten. The green girl was probably stuck listening to Doctor Dillamond drone on and on about something he shouldn't. Galinda shook her head at the thought and decided to pull out her script to read over.

"Poor Miss Galinda," a voice said from a table behind her. She didn't even have to turn her head to know it was Pfannee, a smugness in her voice that made Galinda want to scream. "It must be _so_ difficult to put on a musical with no cast!" A few other voices agreed, quiet chuckles and giggles noticeable behind the insincerity. "Even the artichoke abandoned her in the end."

Galinda swiveled around to face the table of girls. "Miss Pfannee, if you insist on talking about me behind my back, please be so kind as to do it quietly."

"Oh, Miss Galinda! We didn't see you there, did we girls?" Pfannee smirked, nudging the girl beside her. Shenshen was smiling too, though she didn't look quite so pleased with herself as Pfannee.

Galinda had no clue what to say, so she just turned back around and continued to read. She raised her elbows to the surface of the table and rested her head in her hand, though she could hardly concentrate knowing _they_ were sat right behind her.

"Maybe she'll have to play each role herself," Pfannee said, voice quieter than before. "She could even paint herself green." The table of girls laughed out loud, an annoying chorus that irritated Galinda. Part of her suddenly understood why Elphaba had hated her so much - she used to be just like them and even though it had only been a week since she was driven out of that silly group of friends, Galinda had hoped she'd changed for the better. At least a little bit.

It was when the titters turned into gasps that Galinda tore her eyes away from the script and was met by the disgruntled face of Elphaba. Some strands of inky black hair had escaped her braid and the funny blue beanie she always wore, which Galinda thought looked like something a grey old woman would wear, was slightly lopsided on her head. Over her right shoulder, Galinda heard the distinct noise of Pfannee snorting, followed by some muttering and a long silence.

They were finally quiet and Galinda couldn't keep the grin off her face. "You're late!"

"When you say that with a smile on your face I'm not sure whether it's a good or a bad thing," Elphaba grumbled, slamming a book down on the table and sitting opposite the blonde.

Galinda groaned and then whispered, probably louder than she anticipated, "Miss Pfannee and those silly girls were at it again." She quickly glanced in their direction. "I think the sight of you made them stop."

"Either that." Elphaba adjusted her glasses. "Or they saw you reading and were stunned into silence."

"Miss Elphaba! I read all the time!"

"Price tags on clothes don't count."

Galinda fought the small pull of a smile on her lips and looked Elphaba up and down. She hadn't even tried to tidy herself up! "What happened to you?"

"I have many afflictions, which one are you referring to?"

Galinda crossed her arms. "Your hair is an awful mess! I never think much of your fashion choices but even I have to admit your hair is normally _neatly_ tied up in that dull braid!"

Elphaba shrugged. "It started to rain, so I ran here."

Galinda hadn't ever seen Elphaba run, but she imagined it hilarious. "Why?" was all she could say.

"Because contrary to popular belief, I am not a toad," Elphaba said. "Water burns my skin."

At that, Galinda was rendered speechless. She and Elphaba stared at each other, before Galinda couldn't stand it any longer. "Don't be ridiculous!"

"It's true."

"If it _is_ true - how do you bathe?" Galinda paused, horrified. "The green! Is it -"

"No, my skin color isn't mold. Or dirt. Or anything that could be washed off," Elphaba said flatly, as if she had explained it dozens of times before.

"I just _had_ to get lumped with the unwashed green girl!" Galinda cried.

"I never said I didn't wash myself," Elphaba said, frowning. "I use oils in place of water."

Feeling a small pang of guilt for her hurtful outburst, Galinda's expression softened. She didn't believe her roommate had reason to lie about such a thing. And to tell Galinda about it, when they had been sworn enemies for months prior? Maybe Elphaba, behind her guarded demeanor and biting words, was starting to trust her.

"Do you have any idea why it burns?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba shook her head. "I saw many physicians as a child but none of them proved useful. My father has always believed it to be punishment for my mere existence." Her eyes drifted from Galinda to the book she'd placed on the table. "It could always be worse."

Galinda let out a breath. "I can't think how it could be any worse." She flicked a curl of blonde hair out of her face. "I don't have enough imagination for all of that."

"You had enough imagination to think up a bubble large enough to carry a Princess around her kingdom." Elphaba pointed to the script laid out on the table. "And a flying broom."

Galinda couldn't stop the strained noise that escaped her lips. "Well it sounds stupid when you say it like that!"

"It sounds stupid regardless," the green girl replied. "I dread whatever's coming next."

"Don't!" Galinda beamed and slid the script towards Elphaba. "I think you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised!"

Dark eyes narrowed before looking down at the messily written script. Galinda watched the green girl skip the first scene, her fingers flicking through the pages until she came to Scene Two. Elphaba had already read the second scene, making fun of the transporting bubble while she was at it, why was she reading it again? Galinda prepared to be chastised for her 'lazy writing' or some other insult she knew her roommate would come up with. It never came, though. Elphaba turned the page and continued reading as if Galinda wasn't there, which she should have been expecting; Elphaba _was_ the most avid reader at Shiz.

"There's a song here," Elphaba said quietly, tapping the bottom of the page.

"Yes, when the Princess is... flying," Galinda said, "in the bubble."

Elphaba looked irritated. "Where is it?"

"Oh! The lyrics? I kept them to myself."

"Why?" Elphaba asked, staring Galinda in the eye. "They can't be much worse than this."

The blonde shook her head, hair bouncing. "You're very mean, Miss Elphaba."

"I'm very honest."

"If you must know, I kept the song lyrics to myself because I'm still working on them," she said, nose in the air. "Song writing does take some time, you know." Galinda sniffed and glanced at the girl across from her. Elphaba looked thoroughly unconvinced. "If you don't believe me, speak to Miss Greyling!"

"I don't believe in things I cannot see," Elphaba replied. "Until I see the song lyrics with my own eyes, I'll assume Miss Greyling wrote them for you."

"Must you be so stubborn?" Galinda moaned. She caught the hint of a smile on the green girl's face and immediately felt some relief. "If I show you, just this song, will you promise not to laugh?"

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "For me to laugh, it would have to be funny. And for something to be funny, the person that had written it would have to have some wit."

There was an insult in there somewhere, Galinda knew. But she chose to ignore it and opened her purse. In it was her pink notebook and a collection of pens. She pulled a loose page out of the book, chewing on her lip as she did so. No one had read the lyrics except herself and Miss Greyling. Giving over the piece of paper to Elphaba, of all people, would feel like giving away a piece of herself. She wasn't sure if she was ready to let it go, but she handed over the sheet to Elphaba anyway. Her green roommate stared at her as she let go of it, an expression on her face that Galinda couldn't place. She looked thoughtful and perhaps the tiniest bit sheepish, as if she hadn't expected Galinda to actually let her see her work.

It took Elphaba an oddly long time to read through the lyrics, the same pensive expression on her face. Galinda kept gazing around the hall, desperate for something other than Elphaba to look at. There was a soft knock on the table and Galinda turned her head, catching Elphaba look her way before she handed the piece of paper back to her. Elphaba wouldn't meet her gaze after that. She was still sat stiffly in her chair but her face looked less severe. Galinda wanted to probe her for her opinion but thought better of it. The lack of criticism would have to be enough.

While Galinda slipped the sheet of paper back into her notebook, Elphaba resumed her reading of the script, frown back in place. She was reading Scene Three, the scene Galinda had enjoyed writing very much. To see her roommate read it with such annoyance made Galinda tilt her head and let out a sigh. Observing Elphaba was an interesting but nerve wracking thing, Galinda had realized. She wore an expression of irritation and disinterest as she read, her eyes darting over the script. Galinda held in a groan. Surely she couldn't have read it so quickly?

"Miss Galinda..." Elphaba trailed off, still reading.

"Hm?" Galinda bit her lip, leaning forward.

"The Princess is best friends with the common Milk Maid?"

"Mhm-hm."

"And they're talking about how handsome the Farmer is."

"Yes," Galinda said, feeling a tad confused.

Elphaba pulled a face. "It's as if you had this conversation in real life and just wrote it into the script!"

"Oh, please. What's so wrong with that?"

"It's lazy," Elphaba remarked. "And I know that deep down you have more going on in that pretty blonde head of yours than you let on! You could write something much better than this drivel, if you dared to try."

Galinda smiled. Elphaba thought she was pretty! She did know that, of course, there wasn't a person in all of Oz that would think otherwise. Coming from Elphaba though, it somehow felt more genuine. Every single person Galinda had ever met had told her she was beautiful, elegant, stunning - she'd been told it so much that she considered it a fact. It wasn't until she met Elphaba Thropp that her thoughts were challenged. Elphaba deeming her pretty seemed like the biggest compliment Galinda could ever receive. And she would gladly take it.

When the word 'pretty' finally drifted from her mind, she had trouble keeping her smile hidden. "Miss Elphaba, is that..." Galinda said, feigning a gasp, "a compliment?" She grinned at the green girl, who was clearly embarrassed. She decided she wanted to exploit it.

"What is this story based on?" Elphaba suddenly asked.

Galinda twirled a curl of blonde hair around her index finger, somewhat annoyed that Elphaba had dodged her teasing. She felt deflated. "Oh, just some old wives tale of an old witch that kidnapped a girl." Galinda shrugged. "Morrible told me about it."

"That isn't much to go on," Elphaba muttered. She reached over and picked up the book she'd bought along. "Read this."

"What is it?"

"A book of fairytales. It might give you some ideas that aren't terrible."

Galinda smiled. "You got this just for me?"

"I've had it since I was a child," Elphaba said. "Nanny would read them to me."

Galinda tried hard to envision Elphaba as a small child, but she just couldn't. To her, Elphaba would always be the awkward gangly girl sat in front of her. "And you bought it to Shiz with you?"

"Evidently."

"Why?"

"Because I knew my superficial roommate would need it to write her mindless little musical," Elphaba spat. "Does it matter why I bought it?"

Galinda frowned. "I only asked you a question."

"An irrelevant one," Elphaba said. "And one that isn't any of your business."

"Well, thank you, Miss Elphaba."

Elphaba scoffed and quickly went back to reading the script as if Galinda was invisible. The blonde kept her gaze on her roommate for a moment before looking down at the large book. It's cover was worn, the lettering faded and near impossible to read. Galinda absent mindedly traced the engraving with her fingers, hesitant to open it up and read. She had an aversion to reading anything other than letters from home, though she was beginning to realize that it may have been a consequence of her popularity. Intelligence didn't seem to matter when it came to winning friends and charming boys. Galinda was beautiful and she was always determined that that was enough to make her interesting. And so she'd spent her life concealing any hint of anything else.

"I'm reading Scene Five and there's no sign of the Prince," Elphaba said abruptly.

Galinda was thrown out of her thoughts. "Is that a problem?"

"It is when you have a whole scene of gossiping about farmhands and one of," Elphaba said, checking the script, "' _beautifying_.'"

"She's going to the ball!" Galinda argued.

" _You_ might need three hours to curl your hair but the Princess doesn't," Elphaba snapped. Her eyes shifted from Galinda back to the script. "Why you wrote a song for this idiotic scene is beyond me."

"Girls sing when they dress themselves."

Elphaba frowned. "Shouldn't the Princess have maids to dress her?"

"Now you're nitpicking! This Princess happens to be independent, just like myself."

"Just like you?" Elphaba snorted. "Don't think I haven't noticed how disconcerted you've been since your band of ninnies cast you out."

"No one cast me out!" Galinda cried. "It was my choice." She tried, but she couldn't look Elphaba in the eye. "And I don't think they were ever 'my' anything."

Elphaba stayed quiet for a moment before she muttered, "A good thing, too. Now you can use that mind of yours and stop hiding it beneath all the giggling and fluttering eyelashes." There was nothing Galinda could think to say. Elphaba didn't leave any room for argument, she just went right back to reading without even a look in the Galinda's direction.

"So what do you think?" Galinda asked a short while later, when she noticed that Elphaba had read through most of the next scene.

"I don't know why you expect me to have an opinion on a ball. That's your world, Miss Galinda, not mine."

"Judging by your behavior in class, you have an opinion on _everything_ ," Galinda complained. "Oh, come on, I can tell you have something to say!"

"Fine. The Princess' first meeting with the Prince is enough to rot my teeth just from reading it."

Galinda frowned. "What's so awful about it?"

"They declare their love to each other after exchanging four lines." Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "I won't pretend to know anything about love but I know it doesn't happen so fast."

"There is such a thing as love at first sight, Miss Elphaba."

"You do remember, don't you, that this Prince is Boq."

Galinda felt faint. "I wrote that with Fiyero in mind!" At the thought of the Winkie prince, her shoulders fell. "I never thought this would be so difficult."

"That's the problem - you weren't thinking."

Galinda huffed. "Well can you blame me? Thinking may come naturally to you, as naturally as my looks came to me, but it's ever so exhausting."

"We can always rewrite this scene," Elphaba suggested.

Galinda blinked. " _We_?"

"Although Boq would swoon at this nonsense," the green girl said, gesturing to the script, "it would be unfair."

"On who?"

"On Boq, and you," Elphaba replied. "And the audience, for having to sit through such starry-eyed drivel."

It was with a sweet smile on her face that Galinda replied, "Thank you, Miss Elphaba."

Said green girl sat back and scoffed. "You shouldn't thank me just yet." And with that, she continued to read, her face hidden by the script.

Understanding that Elphaba didn't want to be disturbed any longer, Galinda resolved to start reading the book. Or at least try to. It wasn't a great help that the room was alive with noisy chatter and showed no sign of letting her concentrate.

She chewed her lip for a long moment, struggling with her thoughts. She was still wary of Pfannee and the others, though they hadn't uttered a word since Elphaba had arrived. If she were to be caught reading an tattered old book like the one in front of her, well, she was certain she would be ridiculed even more. To tumble from the perfect image of popularity to the level of Elphaba, the awkward green bookworm, would completely ruin her life. Galinda wasn't sure what would be worse; carrying on with no friends or becoming friends with Elphaba. Either way she would only continue to be shunned, so she leaned in and threw open the book.

It was dusty and old, with yellowed pages and a dry, musty smell that made Galinda almost sneeze. Avoiding touching the book as much as she could, the she eyed the contents and turned to the first chapter. She read the first sentence seven times before it stuck in her mind, just managing to stop herself from giving up and slamming it closed.

A small smile grew on her lips as she came to the end of the first page and she felt compelled to give herself a break. How Elphaba read for hours on end remained a mystery to Galinda. Reading seemed to her just as hard as thinking, though she supposed they were both quite similar. And tiring. Taking advantage of the lack of Elphaba's stern attention on her, Galinda shuffled back in her chair and looked up and out of the window.

Unfortunately, it didn't last long. Galinda's eyes widened when she heard a harsh laugh and Pfannee appeared at her side, a smirk on her face and a teacup in her hand. Her former friend looked from her to Elphaba before clearing her throat and saying, with an air of superiority, "Miss Galinda, myself and the girls were wondering if you would like to join us." She took another look at Elphaba, as if she were willing the green girl to take some notice of her. "We cannot bear the thought of you having to keep company with the artichoke."

Elphaba didn't say or do anything. Even her hands were still, her slim fingers gripping the script as she read. Galinda nodded to herself and decided to follow her roommate's example and read. Or in Galinda's case, pretend to read. To say Pfannee was displeased would be an understatement. Galinda could tell the spiteful girl was offended without even taking a look at her face.

"Miss Galinda," Pfannee said, louder, and she slammed the teacup onto the table. Tea spilled everywhere, including all over Elphaba's book. Milky, sugary liquid stained and seeped through the pages, much to Galinda's horror. The din had finally earned Elphaba's attention and for the first time, Galinda saw the green girl's eyes flash with anger. Inevitably, the blonde had managed to irritate, embarrass and upset Elphaba during their time rooming together - Elphaba had done her fair share of the same to her. Yet Galinda hadn't ever witnessed such strong emotion in her roommate. Between the anger, there was something else about Elphaba. Fear, perhaps. Even though the green girl shrank away from the table and further into her seat with a pained look on her face, Galinda could tell she wanted to pick up the book.

Pfannee snatched up the toppled over teacup, keeping her amused eyes glued to Galinda. "What is that you were reading?"

Panicked, Galinda reached across, grabbing the soaked book. Her fingers pried apart a few of the pages, which were now completely see through. Tea dripped down into the large puddle forming on the table.

"You simple little twit!" Elphaba cursed.

Pfannee made a dismissive gesture with her free hand. "It's just an old book. It was falling apart anyway."

"It's important to me," Elphaba hissed.

"So the green freak does have feelings," Pfannee said cruelly.

Galinda set the book down again, pushed out her chair and stood up straight, hands on hips. "Miss Pfannee, I appreciate the offer," she began, head held high, "but please, tell the girls that I would much rather sit here with Miss Elphaba than expose myself to your, and their, inane company." She wouldn't admit it, least of all to Elphaba, but her heart was racing in her chest and she felt a horrible giddiness rush to her head. It was all too much. She couldn't deny, though, that the look of shock on Pfannee's face made it worth it. Her face soured so much that Galinda could almost see her makeup crack and flake off. Her eyes searched the other girl's face, defiant. No response came. Pfannee sharply turned on her heel and marched back to the table. A few whispers came forward, the words too quiet for Galinda to catch.

Tossing her curls and struggling not to make a show of herself, she sat back down, unaware of the uncertain look Elphaba was giving her. She perched on the edge of her seat, still reeling. It had felt freeing to finally tell them what she thought of them. At that moment, her heart had soared and it must have shown on her face, because the green girl opposite her was staring, speechless.

"The book!" Galinda cried, suddenly remembering. Was that why Elphaba was acting so strangely? "I'm so sorry," Galinda murmured, picking it up by the back cover. It truly was a mess, perhaps ruined completely.

Elphaba sat forward, warily eyeing the puddle of cold tea. "It will dry," she said.

"That isn't the point," Galinda replied, angry. "That stupid girl - "

Elphaba shook her head. "Stop right there, we don't need you becoming as wicked as me."

Galinda took a breath and smiled. "I doubt I could even if I tried." The puddle caught her eye. "I'll clean this mess up." And then she rushed off for something to wipe up the tea.

She returned to catch Elphaba examining her hand, though she was being as discreet about it as she could. Just as she saw Galinda, the green girl took up the script and stiffly shifted back into her reading position - which looked uncomfortable enough to begin with. Elphaba was too tall to ever look like she fit anywhere.

Galinda skipped back to the table, handkerchief in hand. Elphaba visibly relaxed as she wiped up the tea, moving closer and leaning her sharp elbows on the surface. The blonde sat back down with so much energy that she seemed to bounce up and down. Elphaba's eyes were slits, somewhat unnerving to Galinda, peering at her over the script. Averting the unwanted gaze, Galinda looked back down at the book.

"It's none of my business, as you said, but why _is_ this book so important to you?"

"You answered your own question before you even asked it," Elphaba said back. Galinda tilted her head to the side and smiled her sweetest smile. It never failed to work on boys, some girls too, why should _green_ girls be any different? It appeared they weren't. With an exhale, Elphaba relented. "Open it."

So Galinda did. As she had expected, there was nothing so special about it. "What is it I'm supposed to be looking for?"

"The back cover," Elphaba explained.

"Oh," Galinda breathed, turning pages. She came to the back cover with a frown. At first glance there was nothing that seemed all that interesting or important. However, when she bought the book closer to her face, she saw, in faded handwriting, the words ' _property of_ _Melena_ _Thropp_ '. "Your mother?"

"Yes," Elphaba said, shifting in her chair.

"I recall Madame Morrible mentioning a sister," Galinda wondered aloud, stupidly. "You never do speak of your family."

"Who do I have to speak to?"

"Me, of course!" Galinda cried. "I'm always interested in people's affairs."

"So you're meddlesome."

"No, _just_ interested," Galinda corrected. "So tell me, is your sister..."

"Green?" Elphaba interrupted. "No, she isn't. She's a normal color, and the favorite."

Galinda looked confused. "Favorite?"

"That's right, you wouldn't know, would you? I'm sure you're the favorite of everyone you meet."

"Well," Galinda began, tossing her hair with one hand, "I _was_ , until I met you."

Elphaba looked amused for a split second before her expression hardened. "My sister is everything I am not, a fact that only made my father adore her more. He puts up with me, that's all."

The seriousness on Elphaba's face made Galinda regret bringing up the green girl's family. She was being stupid again. She should have known it would a difficult subject. A green person's life wouldn't exactly be a heart warming story but to hear that Elphaba thought her father didn't care for her? Something overcame her and she hurried to ask, "Why would you think that?"

"It isn't something I need to be told," the green girl said, completely unaffected. "He makes it clear enough."

"That's awful!"

Elphaba remained blunt. "I've gotten used to it."

"You shouldn't have had to! It's a father's duty to love his child no matter what."

"Even when they're green?" Elphaba asked, though the expression on her face told Galinda the answer. "It's easy for you to say that. Your father probably had no trouble loving you." Chairs scraped on floorboards and noisy chatter faded into a low hum as students reluctantly rose for afternoon class. "I read through the rest of it," Elphaba rushed to say, handing over the script.

"Oh?"

Elphaba stood up, silently prompting Galinda to do the same. "The Prince is written too much like Master Fiyero, which I was impressed by until Scene Five when he cried for three scenes after the kidnapping of the Princess."

"That was too much, wasn't it?"

Elphaba shrugged. "It helped me understand why the Witch wants him dead."

"What was I thinking?" Galinda asked, mainly to herself. " _Was_ I thinking?" She gathered up her purse and shot up out of her chair. "No, no, I wasn't thinking at all!"

"I'll help you," Elphaba finally said. They stood facing each other, oblivious to the glares being sent their way by their classmates. Galinda thought she saw Elphaba's lips twitch into a small smile but it could have just been what she was hoping to see.

"You'll come to class with me?" Galinda burst out with. She would die of embarrassment if she had to make her way to another class alone and after her spat with Pfannee and the other girls, Elphaba's presence would calm her, she knew.

"I don't see why not."

"But first!" Galinda exclaimed, and hopped forward. She bought herself to her tiptoes, reaching up and gently pulling Elphaba's blue beanie back into place. It had been crooked the whole time! And the wool was damp to the touch. Her fingers brushed the messy strands of hair that had escaped the confines of the green girl's usual, boring hairstyle. In a moment of boldness, Galinda tucked them back under the hat and behind Elphaba's ears. She'd been concentrating so much that she hadn't noticed how flustered Elphaba was until she let her eyes wander downward. On her tiptoes, Galinda didn't feel quite so small in comparison to her roommate and Elphaba looked considerably less severe up close. Galinda's traitorous hand very nearly brushed a smooth green cheek as she lowered her arm, but she managed to narrowly avoid any more humiliation. A few weeks ago she had been obsessed with avoiding touching Elphaba's verdigris, or anything the verdigris had touched. And now, all of a sudden, she was _wanting_ to touch it? It didn't sit well with her. While it was true that she was slowly coming around to the idea of being friendly with her roomie, touching was _too much_! "There," she said, stepping back and admiring her handiwork. Elphaba still looked flustered, but by now she was narrowing her eyes and trying to fight it. It was quite comical to Galinda. "That was bothering me."

Elphaba looked like she was waking from a disturbing dream. "We should get to class." Galinda, redfaced, had no choice but to follow.

* * *

Class had finished, leaving Galinda abandoned once again - this time by Elphaba. Which would have been horribly embarrassing if Galinda wasn't so upset by it. As soon as class had ended, Elphaba had stomped off to the library and left Galinda in the middle of the hallway, alone. She'd tried to convince the stubborn green girl that she wanted to join her, but the stormy look on the taller girl's face had changed her mind immediately. And now she was lying on her bed, surrounded by the color pink, dreamily scribbling in her notebook.

Elphaba's book was sat on the windowsill, drying in the afternoon sun. Galinda kept glancing at it, worrying over the crinkled pages. She was undeniably troubled. There was so much work to be done, both with her studies and with the musical. Her shoulders were heavy with responsibility and she wasn't experienced at all with handling it. Knowing she now had Elphaba on her side was a relief. But there was always the problem of Boq plaguing her.

Her mind traveled from the Munchkin boy to the Winkie prince, who she hadn't spoken to since the day he humiliated her. Her attraction was shallow and juvenile, yet her heart still ached for him, ignoring his indiscretion. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, coming out of her stupor. The page before her was strewn with hearts and a crude little drawing of what looked like herself and Fiyero holding hands and wearing crowns. Galinda's eyes went wide and she violently ripped the page out, screwing it into a ball and tossing it at the wall.

She let herself fall backwards onto the many plump cushions she had positioned against her headboard, hesitating for a moment before turning to the back of her notebook, where the lyrics to most of the songs were hidden. They were precious to her, and she still felt mortified that she'd been so weak as to let Elphaba read some of them. The green girl's reaction had only increased her anxiety tenfold. With a sigh, Galinda turned through the sheets of paper until she came to her favorite song. Her cheeks reddened and her smile broadened as she sang it in her mind. Miss Greyling had urged Galinda to sing it aloud, but the blonde had politely refused. However beautiful the song was on paper, which she would admit with confidence, she was terrified that it wouldn't sound as fantastical as it did in her head. And she'd put so much effort into the lyrics, using words she'd never used before in her life.

Finding herself humming the melody, Galinda shook her head. She wouldn't allow herself to sing it, not alone in her _shared_ room! What if Elphaba barged in like she always did? Not to mention Galinda's suspicion about the stupid paper-thin Crage Hall walls.

A few more reads and her resolve vanished. She launched herself off of her bed, sending pieces of paper drifting about the room. She still held one sheet in her hand, settling into position beside Elphaba's ugly bed, just so she had a good view of herself in the mirror. At the sight of her tousled hair, she shrieked and rushed over to her desk to brush it back into style. Ten minutes later, when she was happy with it, she flounced back to the other side of the room as if she were being watched. A dramatic full body stretch later and she was ready.

Galinda sang with a controlled but passionate voice. The song began quietly, slowly until about halfway through when it required Galinda to step out of her usual range. She loved that most about the song; the opportunity to do it right, and impress. Soon her body moved along with the singing. She swayed around the room, light on her feet. She wouldn't admit it out loud, but she never was the best or most graceful dancer. That, however, didn't stop her from attempting to bring her vision to life. Her foot landed on a creaky floorboard, throwing her off for a second and interrupting her singing. Still she carried on, exalting at how beautiful it sounded. Imagining it with the piano accompaniment made Galinda leap into the air.

Balancing on one leg while trying to maintain some poise wasn't easy, Galinda found out when she stumbled during her landing. Deciding to ignore her mistakes, the blonde gleefully raised her head and let out a giggle. The audience went wild in her mind, boys throwing flowers to her, girls struggling to conceal their jealousy. And of course, Pfannee and Shenshen were front and center, bitter and glaring. She saw Fiyero on his knees before her, begging her forgiveness and kissing her feet but she paid no mind. Elphaba's green face was in the midst of the crowd, her arms crossed, an expression on her face that Galinda couldn't read. Until she turned to see the real Elphaba stood in the doorway, eyes wider than Galinda had ever seen them. The shorter girl stifled a scream and dropped her lyric sheet, covering as much of herself as she could with frantic hands.

"Why are you doing that? You aren't naked."

Galinda lowered her hands, clenching them into fists. "My soul is naked!" Elphaba scowled at that, giving Galinda time to chastise herself for saying it. "Why are you here? How much of it did you hear?"

"Most of it," Elphaba replied, setting a pile of books down on her desk with a _thunk_ _._ "It's not my fault you were singing so loudly that you didn't hear the door."

"I knew I should've locked it," Galinda whined.

"I doubt that would have made a difference."

"Did anyone... say anything to you?"

"No one ever says anything to me."

Galinda didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. "Oh, I see."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "What's the matter? Did you expect the whole of Crage Hall to form a line outside our room and beg you for autographs?"

"That does sound delightful, but no," Galinda replied, crossing her arms. "I'm happy that nobody heard me." Elphaba scoffed and perched on the edge of her bed, leaning down to pull off her awful bulky boots. Galinda would never get used to them or accept them as anything other than a pair of doorstops. The green girl winced as she yanked the first one off. "Miss Elphaba?" Concerned, Galinda gingerly stepped toward Elphaba's side of the room. But when the green girl winced again, holding one hand loosely in the other, the blonde hurried over. "What did you do?"

"Nothing."

Galinda frowned, sitting herself beside Elphaba, not even caring about the ugly sheets. "Let me see." Without warning, Galinda took hold of Elphaba's wrist. A large red burn marked the skin of her palm, with a few smaller burns prominent on some fingers. Galinda's eyes widened but she managed to stifle a gasp. "Don't tell me you touched your hat? Oh no, I meant to tell you that it was wet, I - "

"It wasn't the hat," Elphaba interjected. "It was the tea."

"What? But I didn't see you touch any!" Galinda lightly brushed the burn with her thumb. "Tell me what to do."

"Miss Galinda, I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself. I've been doing it all my life."

"Then I think it's about time you let somebody else take care of you," Galinda replied.

Elphaba looked taken aback, but nodded. "My oils are in the top drawer."

Galinda scrambled over to Elphaba's desk. After some fiddling, she grabbed one of the bottles and a cloth and settled herself back down on the bed. Elphaba held out her hand, looking at anything but Galinda. The blonde smiled, shuffling closer and pouring some of the oil onto the cloth before pressing it lightly onto the burn. They sat there in silence, Galinda eventually giving up the cloth. Elphaba cringed when she started rubbing in the oil with her fingers. It was oddly intimate, even to Galinda, who would always touch her friends, and boys, and had no qualms about hand holding. Not that she was holding Elphaba's hand - they were barely touching - but she didn't refrain from trying to hold onto the green girl's hand tighter. It was clear that Elphaba wasn't used to being touched, at least not affectionately. She had a wary look in her eye, a stiffness in her posture.

Galinda took a breath and released Elphaba's hand. "Maybe I should bandage it?"

"No, thank you," Elphaba muttered.

"How did you write in class?"

"With difficulty."

"Well, clearly." Galinda pouted, annoyed that Elphaba wouldn't look her way. The green girl's rejection was swiftly wiped from her mind, though, when she noticed her lyric sheet laying on the floor beside the bed. She reached down to pick it up, feeling a shift in the mattress.

Elphaba carefully grabbed a book from her new pile and laid herself down with her head awkwardly against the headboard. Galinda noted how uncomfortable it looked, wrinkling her nose. She wasn't stupid - she knew that it meant she was unwanted company. It became even more evident when Elphaba opened the book and read in her usual position, with her face hidden in the pages. If only Elphaba gave Galinda as much attention as she did her books, they could have finished rewriting the musical hours ago.

"What are you reading?" Galinda asked, stretching across the bed.

"In this moment, nothing, because I'm being interrupted."

"Oh, sorry," Galinda said, purposely fidgeting before admitting defeat and returning to her own, much more comfortable bed.

An hour went by before Elphaba emerged from behind her book, time Galinda had spent reading through her sheets upon sheets of lyrics and chewing the end of her pencil - to her own disgust every time she realized she'd been doing it. The sun was going down and a darkness fell around them. The room was still before Elphaba spoke up and said, "Thank you, Miss Galinda."


	6. Chapter 6

Well... this story is going to be longer than I expected. Thank you if you're still reading and an even bigger thank you if you've reviewed, seeing those makes me smile. Even if it's just one or two words!

Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

Elphaba always sat beneath the same fruit tree by the Suicide Canal, trying to escape the antics of her classmates. She was content being alone. Alone always suited her. But Boq wouldn't take a hint. He'd followed her to the library, blathering on about Galinda. And when she'd had enough and attempted to lose him on her way to her usual reading spot, he'd caught her just as she was walking through the orchard. She had always imagined she was at home with the trees, they were tall and green like her, and yet the Munchkin boy had spotted her easily.

"I would speak to her about it myself, but..." Boq trailed off. He was leaning on the tree, arms crossed, cheeks red. What exactly he was talking about Elphaba couldn't say. "She looked like she would cry. I longed to take her in my arms and comfort her."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You'll have plenty of opportunities to do that, going by what I read in the script. Now stop bothering me about it."

"You read the rest of the script?" Boq asked, grinning. "I never had much of a chance to."

"You didn't miss out on much."

"Well... Miss Galinda tries her best."

"Master Boq," Elphaba began, lowering her book to her lap. "Miss Galinda doesn't _know_ what her best is. How could she try it?"

His cheeks reddened further. "Miss Elphaba, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying that Miss Galinda has yet to try her best at anything." The green girl bought her book back up to her face, not interested in Boq's reaction.

"I thought the parts of the script I read were good," he mumbled, kicking at the ground.

"Yes," Elphaba replied, "because you allowed her to charm you, like everybody else did."

Boq frowned. "I'm nothing like them."

Elphaba nodded. She couldn't argue with that. Despite his infatuation with Galinda, he was one of the few who still spoke to her. He was loyal, though a tad pushy at times. From what Elphaba had gathered, he had tried to ask Galinda when the next rehearsal would be, making her excuse herself and run off. Whether it was the threat of Boq's company or Galinda's worry over how badly the production of the musical was going that made the blonde avoid him, Elphaba didn't know.

However, she _had_ noticed Galinda's concern over rehearsals. In fact, due to her roomie's insistence, Elphaba had agreed to meet Galinda in the library that afternoon when her sorcery seminar was over. And to the green girl's surprise, Galinda had been the one to suggest they meet there. The surprise had disappeared, though, when Elphaba realized that the girl's pride was still somewhat intact and their previous meeting in the lunch hall had been much too public. The library was the one place in Shiz, other than their room, where there wouldn't be anyone around to witness them together. That fact was one that made the library so appealing to Elphaba herself - it was a place where she could be alone with books, the best sort of company, in her opinion. The thought of that company being interrupted by Galinda bothered her. If she were honest with herself, she was still slightly shaken from the previous day - with the touching and the excessive friendliness she'd received from her roommate. It was a frightening experience and Galinda's promise of their meeting in the library, working together in close proximity, was too much.

"Has she said anything to you?" Boq managed to say without stuttering. "About me?"

"Unless your name is Biq, no." Her honesty must have told Boq everything he needed to know because he finally slumped down beside Elphaba on the grass. The green girl shut her book on her thumb, noting a flock of students leaving their classes in the distance. "I should be going."

"Hm? Where are you going? Should I walk you there?"

Elphaba slid her book inside her pocket and made to stand up. "No, thank you."

Boq looked disappointed. "Goodbye, then, Miss Elphaba."

"Goodbye, Master Boq."

She turned and walked off in her usual swift way, feeling a horrible sensation in her stomach that had been with her most of the day. It wasn't like her to feel this way. Living with green skin had taught her to take everything in her stride and she'd been sure she was comfortable with handling Galinda, though it now appeared she wasn't. Not much had changed between them, so why did it feel like there had been a shift?

Elphaba was frowning to herself, probably a terrifying sight to those around her, when she arrived outside the library. At first she was hesitant to go inside, wanting to spite Galinda and leave her in there alone all afternoon - she knew how much that would annoy the blonde - but she thought better of it and made her way up the steps until someone called her name.

"Miss Elphaba!"

The green girl turned her head, catching sight of a flustered Galinda hurrying her way. She was holding a book, trying to run in her heeled shoes and her hair was bouncing, catching the light of the sun. Elphaba clenched her jaw. At least the silly girl hadn't forgotten. The sooner they got this over with, the better. And if Galinda's so called 'work' in class was anything to go by, rewriting parts of her terrible script would take a fair bit of time.

"I'm so sorry I'm late," Galinda said, running her free hand through her curls. "I went back to the dorm to put my things away. Morrible always gives us these awful thick sorcery spell books to read, if you ask me they make better paper weights than books. Nobody reads them!"

"It's no wonder you're doing so badly in her classes," Elphaba said.

"Oh, Miss Elphaba, even a bookworm like you would find these books boring."

"I have no interest in sorcery, so I suppose you're right."

"Really?" Galinda asked, following Elphaba up the steps. "I didn't either until coming to Shiz. The opportunity to prove Madame Morrible wrong about me helped me along, I think."

"And have you?"

"What?"

"Proven her wrong."

"Not quite yet," Galinda replied, sheepish. "I'm still struggling with simple spells." Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "If she were a better tutor I wouldn't have such a problem!"

"And if you took the time to read the books she gave you?" Elphaba said, pushing open the door.

Galinda pouted, stepping into the library. "Don't you start. Miss Milla says the same thing."

Elphaba went off ahead, expecting Galinda to follow her to her usual secluded spot. There was no one else around and the only sound was the clicking of Galinda's heels.

When they eventually came to her usual table, Elphaba pulled out a chair and sat down. She was tempted to take out her book and carry on reading, a habit that would take a long time to break, but instead she watched a wide-eyed Galinda tilt her head up.

"Who has the time to read this many books?" she asked.

"People with green skin and no friends."

Galinda snapped her head around. "You've read them all?"

Elphaba shook her head. "I've read many of them. Most of them are fiction."

"Oh, good! We can steal some of their ideas!"

Elphaba saw the amusement on her roommate's face and decided to challenge it. "Your family is rich, Miss Galinda?"

"Yes, _very_. Why do you ask?"

"If you're going to _steal_ other peoples' work, you'll need to be prepared to part with that wealth."

"I wasn't being serious. Really, Miss Elphaba, I was led to believe you had a brain!" The blonde ignored Elphaba's glare and bounced over to the table. The book she had been holding turned out to be Elphaba's storybook, tea stains and crinkled pages included. The green girl glanced down at it, still reluctant to touch it. Thankfully Galinda sat down and opened it for her, pulling out her script and some sheets of paper. "Where do we begin?"

"I was intending to ask you the same question," Elphaba replied, watching Galinda lean in closer.

"Am I going to need to rewrite my songs, too?" Galinda whined, shuffling in her chair. "I'd hate to waste them, especially after all that work."

"If we're careful about how we do this, we might be able to keep the songs." Beside her, Galinda smiled like she had done the day before. "Just not the one about beautifying yourself. I already made my distaste for that clear."

"As if I could forget," Galinda said under her breath. "Aren't there any books on writing musicals?"

"I doubt any student at Shiz has needed such a book until now," Elphaba muttered. "There are some on creative writing."

"Those will have to do!"

Elphaba, upon Galinda's urging, set out to seek out an appropriate book. As she weaved her way through shelves, Galinda's humming fading the further she wandered, she cursed herself - not for the first time - for agreeing to help. Accepting the role had been one thing, but now she found herself in the midst of something she couldn't escape from. If she backed out now, after telling Galinda she would help, the two would go back to being each other's worst enemy. And just when they were starting to see each other as something other than complete opposites. She wasn't certain why she cared, but she did.

When she returned moments later, book in hand, Galinda was doodling on a piece of paper, making a point to hide it from Elphaba as she sat back down. With a smile, Galinda scraped her chair closer to Elphaba until they were close to touching.

The blonde girl dropped her pencil and opened the book but after reading some of the first page, she threw her head back and groaned. "This is why I don't read books."

"You've not even read one page," Elphaba snapped.

"I'm finding it hard to concentrate," Galinda retorted. Elphaba frowned, silently agreeing. Even she was struggling. And all because Galinda was sat too close, her hair tickling Elphaba's face each time she moved. They forced themselves to read two more pages until Galinda bristled. "I've never been so bored in my life! And I've been surrounded by my fair share of boring people."

Elphaba frowned, taking a guess that she was on that list of individuals. "There is some good advice here, if you could read words more than three letters long."

"I can read perfectly," Galinda squeaked. "I just don't appreciate dusty old books telling me how to be creative."

"You're the one that told me to find it," Elphaba said through gritted teeth.

"Well now I see that was a mistake." Galinda crossed her arms and sat back. "No one should be able to tell anybody how to create something. It's different from, say, writing an essay on the history of Oz, not that I would ever take time out of my day to write about something so tedious," she hurried to say, making Elphaba roll her eyes. "There's no right or wrong answer when you write a story yourself. If I were to write that Oz was created by a Munchkin with a wand, that would be wrong. But if I wrote that down in my story it wouldn't be questioned."

Elphaba couldn't think of a single thing to say. She could feel Galinda looking at her, expecting something. Even as her bubbly roomie had been talking, she had managed to think up a few sarcastic remarks, but now they were lost to her. She hadn't expected Galinda to refuse the help of anything, even the books she found _so very boring_. But this time it seemed Galinda was not so opposed to using her brain.

"How do you know Oz _wasn't_ created by a Munchkin with a wand?" Elphaba teased.

"Oh, shush," Galinda huffed, grabbing the book from Elphaba's hands and flinging it across the table. "We won't be needing that." Before Elphaba could say anything else, the blonde opened her script and began scribbling over some of the dialogue in Scene One as if she were in a rush to stop anyone else from reading it. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, her lips parted, a look of embarrassment on her pretty face.

"What are you doing?" Elphaba asked, frowning.

"Making sure nobody else is given the chance to laugh at me."

"We need that."

Galinda stopped her oddly neat scribbling and turned to look at Elphaba. "You hated everything about it."

"I hated the broomstick," Elphaba corrected. "And the writing was poor, but we can learn from those mistakes." A small smile bloomed on Galinda's face, which even Elphaba found she couldn't look away from. "Is there any particular part that needs changing?"

"How about 'everything'?" Galinda groaned, taking another look down at her work. After a long moment where Elphaba swore she heard the cogs turning in Galinda's brain, the blonde seemed to come back to life, frantically flipping through pages of the script until she came to the very end. "The kiss."

"Yes, the most important part," Elphaba said, straight-faced. Galinda gave up on her delicate method of crossing out and went ahead, stabbing the sheet of paper as she scribbled across the page. With wide eyes, Elphaba glanced from the script, back to Galinda.

"I know what you're thinking, Miss Elphaba, but I'll be expired and laying in the ground before I ever agree to kiss Biq!"

Elphaba paled as much as her green skin could. She suddenly wished she had been more forward with Boq during their earlier exchange. If he knew that she and Galinda were rewriting the script, he would have wanted to come - to convince Galinda, in his own awkward way, to keep the kiss and the touches between their characters - but Elphaba knew Galinda better than he did. No amount of convincing would ever succeed in getting the blonde to kiss the Munchkin boy. Though that didn't stop Elphaba from feeling guilty. Without the kiss, which she knew Boq was giddy with excitement for, his heart would be broken and he would blame her over his beloved Galinda. "It's stupid to have a Princess and a Prince with no kiss," she said, feeling as though she had to.

"Not every story has a happy ending," Galinda argued. "Maybe I'll have the Princess die. I've always wanted to act out a death!"

"This story _would_ have a happy ending if the Prince were tall and played by Master Fiyero." When Galinda looked like she would respond, Elphaba stopped her. "Have the Prince die," she said bluntly, trying to save Boq too much humiliation. "He can die a hero, attempting to rescue the Princess."

"And the Witch could kill him!"

Narrowing her eyes, Elphaba felt compelled to smack herself. She was only giving Boq all the more reason to despise her. "Fine. We should write this down." With a nod, Galinda started scrawling their new ideas down on a sheet of paper. Elphaba pursed her lips, watching. Of course she would have to be the one to tell Boq about his character's death, and all without a kiss from the Princess. She suppressed a sigh, grabbed a piece of paper and took the script away from Galinda. "Read the book, it will help. I'll see what I can do with this." She left no room for argument, which Galinda must have understood because she nodded and reached for the open book.

A silence fell around them. Occasionally Galinda would write something down with that new look of determination on her face that Elphaba had never seen before. In fact, she'd found herself peering over at her roommate often. There was something different about Galinda - looking at her when she wasn't aware seemed to open the door to the real Galinda Upland, not the superficial, spoilt girl that Elphaba had become accustomed to during their time at Shiz. There was a line of concentration between her eyebrows and sometimes she would lick her lips before turning the page. For the first time, it looked to Elphaba like Galinda truly cared about something other than her appearance.

For a brief moment of dread, the green girl feared she had been thinking aloud when the blonde looked at her out of the corner of her eye, a shy smile on her face. "I couldn't find you to ask this morning," she began, "but how is your hand feeling today?"

"It feels fine."

Galinda turned back to the book in front of her. "Those oils you use really are helpful, hmm?" Elphaba shrugged, annoyed that Galinda was attempting to make small talk when they were supposed to be working. The silence between them returned, as did Elphaba's inadvertent observation of the girl beside her.

After a while, Galinda turned a page and let out a sigh. "Miss Elphaba?"

"What?"

"Was this one of the stories your Nanny used to read to you?"

With a grunt, Elphaba put down the script and peered across the table. Galinda rushed to flick to the first page, but Elphaba already knew which story it was. It was her favorite one - the one she would beg Nanny to read to her every night. "That was my favorite," she said, the smallest hint of a smile on her lips.

"It seems little Miss Elphaba had good taste," Galinda announced. "It's my favorite one too!"

"It's the only one you've read."

"Details, details. I can tell it will still be my favorite by the time I've read the others. It's so unique - and emotional! Did you notice the tears in my eyes while I read it?"

Elphaba shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "No, I didn't. Believe it or not I have better things to do than watch your every move. I'm not one of the brainless masses that used to flock around you." For a split second Galinda looked hurt, her eyes cast down, hands in her lap. And Elphaba mentally scolded herself. Her sharp tongue still wasn't used to treating Galinda like anything other than an enemy.

"I suppose I am being a little dramatic," Galinda said, carefully wiping at her eyes, "it's a curse." The silence that followed wasn't comfortable. With her hands in her lap and the uncomfortable feeling in her stomach returning, Elphaba tried her best not to look Galinda in the eye. "I never thought to consider the villain's side of the story," the smaller girl finally said.

The words hung in the air for a while before Elphaba dared speak again. "Evil has to come from somewhere."

"The witch in this story - she was a mother, once. She did all she could to protect her children but in the end all anybody saw was a monster. Why?"

"People fear what they don't understand."

Galinda bit her lip. "And you would know better than most."

"I'd say so. There are times I want to be free of myself too."

Galinda looked down and began fiddling with the corner of the page. "I've never truly known why I chose to hate you," she hesitated to say. "From the moment I met you, my head told me that you came into my life just to ruin it. That you deserved to be hated and ridiculed, and everyone else went along with everything I said, never doubting me but always hating you. Just because you have green skin." She looked up. "That wasn't very fair, was it?"

Elphaba hadn't asked herself that question before. Since birth she had been hated and feared, even by her own father. Fairness never came into it. It was just a fact of her life. But by the way Galinda looked at her, the green girl felt the need to be honest. "There are plenty of reasons to hate a person. Being green is just one of them."

"Now, Miss Elphaba-"

"It wouldn't be right for me to blame you. My appearance offended you, as it likely still does, and appearance was all you cared about."

"I care about a great many things," Galinda cried. "I care about this silly musical, and my friends back home in the Gillikin, and of course, my parents. I even care about you, in some stupid way that makes me want to tear my hair out!"

A lump formed in Elphaba's throat, stopping any foolish words from being spoken. Galinda didn't look embarrassed. Her rosy cheeks weren't any more red than they usually were. But the worst thing was the way her eyes were glued to Elphaba, witnessing every anxious little movement she made - from the twitching of her lips to the fiddling of her glasses. And although Elphaba knew Galinda only cared for her because of her much needed help rewriting the terrible script, she felt there was something more beneath the look on the blonde's face.

"I remember asking Nanny what happened after the witch's death. I would always plead with her to make something up," Elphaba said, hoping to distract Galinda. "Nanny never did, though. She told me to use my own imagination and if I thought about it hard enough, I would dream about it." She scoffed. "I didn't." The sound of wood scraping on wood interrupted her thoughts. Galinda had moved her chair and was casually leaning, head in hands, on the table.

When Elphaba scowled at her, Galinda widened her eyes. "Go on."

"There isn't anything to _go on_ to. I thought about it for a while, but nothing ever came to me."

"Why did little Miss Elphaba love the story so much?"

Elphaba clenched her jaw, unwilling to think back on her childlike thoughts. Instead, she picked up the script and with the intent to continue reading, she hid her face behind it. With a huff, Galinda leaned in closer and lowered the jumble of papers with her finger.

Galinda was never one to give up. She wasn't prepared to give up on the musical, despite the mess she'd made of it. She wasn't prepared to give up on her sorcery lessons, despite not doing much to help improve herself. And Elphaba was fully aware that Galinda hadn't given up on Master Fiyero either, despite the fact that he hadn't spoken to her directly since the day Elphaba had embarrassed him in class. Galinda didn't give up easily. And so the green girl lowered the script to the table.

"I would imagine that I was the witch," she confessed. "She didn't have green skin, but she was like me, after a fashion." Elphaba looked away. "I was a child. It didn't have to make sense."

Galinda was smiling, head tilted in her hands. "No, it does make sense."

"Nanny never said anything, but I suspect she thought the same." Elphaba looked across at the open book. "All of those stories have supposedly happy endings. She read me them too, but they all bored me to tears. You can only read so many stories about a princess and a prince falling in love before it turns you into a bitter, green skinned witch. Unfortunately, witches don't get happy endings. Once she's dead and gone the only thing left is the story of her death. A story where people celebrate at the end, forgetting that beneath the evil there is a person - not an altogether good person, but a person nonetheless."

Galinda's smile remained and she was swaying a little in her chair. Elphaba guessed her roommate had drifted into a daydream about herself and Fiyero fondling each other in between the bookshelves. Until she spoke. "It's funny, usually when you spout off about something it's about Ozian history or Animals, or something else that you read about in your books that I wouldn't understand in a million years, but this time," Galinda said, "I think I do." Not sure whether to believe that Galinda had actually been listening to her, Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "Which is why," the blonde announced, "our witch will get the happy ending she deserves."

"Miss Galinda, I didn't say she deserves a-"

"I know what you said." Galinda reached across the table, gathering the old book in her arms. "But if the Prince dies, we can't have the Witch die too. How macabre would that be?"

"She's the villain," Elphaba reminded. "If she survives the story isn't over."

"Is that what all your books say?" Galinda asked, one hand on her hip.

"I told you before. I don't read much fiction."

"Then let me handle this." She grinned. "You may know more about books and stories, but I know _people_."

All Elphaba could manage to do was watch as Galinda, with newfound vigor, started rereading the story. She'd grabbed a pen and snatched a few pieces of paper from the pile, jotting down notes as hastily as she could. Knowing it was pointless to argue with the blonde girl, Elphaba returned to reading the script, hoping she could make some sense of it this time.

Afternoon had turned into evening when Elphaba sat back in her chair. Herself and Galinda hadn't exchanged more than a few words but for some reason their silence hadn't been uncomfortable. Their arms had brushed quite a few times during their time reading, but Galinda hadn't shown any sign of repulsion. All she did was send Elphaba a small, perhaps apologetic, smile and go back to her work.

It was in the growing darkness, as she glanced around at nothing in particular, that Elphaba's stomach grumbled - a noise only made louder by the silence. She scowled and gripped her abdomen, her face growing warm. It was rare for the green girl to be relieved that she was green, but when it came to having a flushed face, she was glad the shade her cheeks took wasn't red. Galinda, though, didn't look up from her writing. She was still scribbling when Elphaba's stomach made another, louder noise.

"I'm going to get something to eat," she blurted. "Would..."

"Hmm?" Galinda hummed, slowly placing her pen down.

Elphaba took a deep breath. "Do you want anything?"

"Well, I - " the blonde hesitated. It was obvious to Elphaba that she was just as taken aback by her behavior as she was herself.

"What? Are you afraid I might slip poison into it like the evil queen in that story you're reading?"

"Why would you do that? We're friends now," Galinda said, smiling. Elphaba blanched and stood up, ready to take off any second. "But yes, I wouldn't mind some soup, if you please."

"Yes," Elphaba said stiffly before sliding one hand into her pocket to search for the money she needed. Then, she escaped.

* * *

Darkness had never frightened Elphaba Thropp. But something else was gnawing at her nerves as she made her way back to the library, taking a shortcut past the canal. She walked through the courtyard, hands trembling, poise faltering. She'd barely had enough money for Galinda's soup and the stale sandwich she'd bought from one of the late night cafes just outside Shiz and the sealed container she was holding was burning her palm. If Galinda's family was as rich as she claimed, she should've had the money to buy her own food. Elphaba narrowed her eyes in the darkness, the one lamp alight outside the library casting a dim orange glow around the steps. Swearing under her breath, the green girl trudged up and kicked the door open with a heavy-booted foot.

Galinda was still bent over her book, making notes. Elphaba didn't try to be quiet when she marched over to the table and sat back down.

The blonde looked up. "Oh, I didn't hear you come in." Elphaba snorted. "Ah! Thank you." Galinda grabbed the soup container and put it to her cheek. "Don't you ever get cold in here? I'm surprised my fingers haven't frozen and broken off by now."

"I'm used to it."

"Well I'd rather not get used to it."

"Nobody asked you to."

Galinda puffed out her cheek. "You aren't much good at small talk."

"I bought you soup. For eating. People tend to be quiet when they're eating unless they want to choke and die," Elphaba said before taking a bite of her sandwich.

"I'm waiting for it to cool down." Galinda pressed the container to her other cheek. "This feels so good."

"Just hope it doesn't burn you like it burnt my hand."

"Your hand?! Your hurt hand?" Galinda shrieked, plopping her soup down and reaching towards Elphaba's wrist.

The green girl pulled away. "No, it's fine. I carried it in my other hand."

Galinda prodded her with her elbow and sat back in her seat. "Miss Elphaba, you mean green thing."

"That's me." She tried to look away and finish her sandwich without any more interruptions by her roomie, but she couldn't. Galinda had picked up her soup again and was caressing the side of the container with her fingers, a playful smile on her face.

"Say, what was wrong earlier? I've never seen a person run so fast!"

"I don't know what you're referring to. I was hungry."

"No, it was something else."

"My growling stomach would beg to differ."

"No. I saw your face when I said 'friend'. You were terrified. All the color drained from your face!" Elphaba stopped chewing and glared at her. "Well maybe not _all_ the color. Just, well, a shade paler."

"Miss Galinda, if words held such power over me, I'd have died and been buried within a week at Shiz."

"I'm not talking about just any old word! I'm talking about the word... friend."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "I enjoyed our time together more when you hated me."

"Friend," Galinda said again, drawing the word out.

"We aren't friends, we're classmates."

"Are you sure? Because fetching food for me seemed more like a _friendly_ gesture." Galinda smirked and finally took a sip of her soup. "I've never seen you fetch soup for any of our other classmates."

"If this is what friendship is then I want no part in it."

That made Galinda's face drop. "I didn't mean to tease. It's just, you're ever so distant, I thought this was the only way to get you to talk about it." Elphaba kept her eyes on the shelf of books to her right, embarrassed. "I wanted you to know that you don't have to pay anything in exchange for friendship."

"Don't try to make me your friend."

"I'm not trying to do that!" Galinda cried, closing her eyes. "I'm trying to be _your_ friend."

Elphaba wanted to accuse the girl beside her of only wanting her because she had nobody else, but she held her tongue. The words had made her feel things other than anger and doubt. So Elphaba turned around. "You should finish that before it gets cold."

When they had both finished, Elphaba read through her notes. There were a lot of changes to be made and by the look of Galinda's pile of pages, their work was far from over. A sigh and a yawn later and Elphaba found herself opening her book from that afternoon. Getting little sleep didn't bother her, but Galinda was beginning to look a little dark around the eyes. She wouldn't go back to Crage Hall, though. Even after Elphaba mentioned how more comfortable her bed would be than the hard wooden chair she was currently sitting on. She'd been adamant that they weren't to leave until she had finished reading the story she was halfway through. Which had led to Elphaba's reluctant agreement.

The candle on the table flickered across the green girl's face as she read, occasionally distracting her. Her back ached from sitting for so long so she eventually shut her book and sat up to stretch. It was then that she saw Galinda. Asleep. On the open book. Her head of blonde curls was facing her way, lips parted slightly, eyes gently closed. The light from the candle danced across her features, a beautiful yellow glow in the darkness. Elphaba pursed her lips, desperate not to wake the sleeping girl as she attempted to stretch her arms and back. But she couldn't. One of Galinda's hands was laying on Elphaba's arm, pinning her down. Elphaba couldn't think when that had happened - she hadn't even felt it. And she swore to herself that she saw Galinda's fingers tighten and relax on the fabric of her blazer.

With her free hand, the green girl reached over but before she could move Galinda's intrusive hand, it tightened it's hold again. The girl must have been dreaming. "Galinda, you little idiot, let go," Elphaba hissed, trying again to remove her roomie's grip. Little did she know, as she tried another three times, the owner of the hand smiled in her sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Wow. I'm so sorry for not updating for... what? Four months? This chapter has been collecting dust on my computer and I had the worst writers block I've ever had. That resulted in me editing this chapter to death and I'm still not totally happy with it but I hope the absence hasn't killed interest in this story. I'm still determined to finish it and I promise the next update won't take so long.

I hope you enjoy this (really) long chapter!

Just a note: the plot of the musical/play will change over the course of the story and I'm trying to keep it simple and "boring" so it won't distract from the _real_ narrative. I don't even think Galinda knows what's going on.

Disclaimer: I do not own Wicked or any of its characters.

* * *

"Have you told him yet?" Galinda asked the next day, settling herself down underneath the tree beside her roommate.

Elphaba's green fingers clenched around the sides of the book she was holding. "No. How could I? You've been following me everywhere." Which was true. Galinda _had_ been following her around since their first class together that morning.

"I pride myself on being sociable," Galinda said proudly. "Even with the _unsociable_." She fixed her gaze on Elphaba, who only shrugged and looked back down at her book.

"I'd prefer it if you let me speak to Master Boq alone. Your presence will just make it worse for all of us."

Galinda groaned. "Please, he's going to have to just accept it. He won't be able to avoid me forever."

"Unfortunately."

"It isn't so bad. If he acts out his death well enough, he might be able to impress me."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "I can't imagine that being much of a consolation prize." She lowered her book. "But the dying shouldn't be a problem. You've ripped out his heart already."

"It's never been my intention to hurt him!"

"Then why have you never made the effort to remember his name?" Elphaba asked angrily.

"I do remember his name. It's Master Boq."

Elphaba narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"I've known his name since he came up to me on my first day at Shiz," Galinda admitted. "Miss Pfannee was convinced it would be funny to call him Biq, as a stupid joke."

"Why haven't you stopped? You aren't like them anymore. Why carry on?"

Galinda chuckled, though she didn't think anything about the situation was funny. "I think I must be," she said faintly. "I kept calling him that to try and put him off pursuing me. It's an awful thing to do, I know." Elphaba's opinion of her must have plummeted, Galinda thought, because the green girl was shaking her head and avoiding her eyes. Galinda sighed and let her head fall back. "I'll call him Boq from now on."

"No, by all means, carry on calling him Biq. It's hilarious." Elphaba turned to look at her. "If Master Fiyero always called you Glinda, wouldn't you be upset?"

Galinda's cheeks reddened. "Master Fiyero can do or say whatever he likes. I wouldn't care either way!"

"The only one you're fooling is yourself," Elphaba said, irritated.

Galinda looked down, not knowing how she could respond. Elphaba was right. The only reason she hadn't chosen to give up on the musical was so she could impress Fiyero, to show him what he was missing. But all she'd managed to do so far was spoil everything - even her progress in befriending her green roommate, who was now reading again. Galinda had swiftly learnt that if Elphaba was reading, the conversation was over.

Soon the midday sun beat down on them so much that Galinda had to bring out her fan. She swished it about, hoping to grab Elphaba's attention. When that didn't work, Galinda grimaced and eyed the green girl carefully. She thought back on the day before - their meeting in the library had unexpectedly gone well. And to her glee, Galinda had uncovered a way to find out more about the green girl and her past and it lay in that tea-stained book.

And although Elphaba remained closed off, made worse by Galinda's foolish confession concerning Boq, she refused to give up. Not while she was still yet to coerce a smile out of her stubborn roomie.

Galinda had seen Elphaba smile at her books when she read, and at Doctor Dillamond when he'd say something particularly complicated and clever, she'd even seen her smile when she was with those odd boys Crope and Tibbett. It may have been selfish and spoilt of her but she wanted Elphaba to smile at _her_.

"Do I look tired to you?" Galinda asked, covering the bottom half of her face with her fan. "I hope missing out on one night of beauty sleep doesn't ruin me." She smirked behind the fan, hoping to win a compliment.

"You look fine," Elphaba replied.

"You didn't even look," she huffed, and flicked the fan closed. "What are you reading anyway?"

"Nothing you'd be interested in."

"I wouldn't say that. I'm quite the reader now," Galinda boasted. Elphaba briefly glanced over at her before delving back into her book. With a deep breath, Galinda dropped her fan into her skirts and swiveled herself around to face Elphaba. "About last night," she began tentatively. She'd been desperate to mention it, if only to fluster Elphaba again, but there hadn't been an appropriate moment. "You called me Galinda."

Elphaba looked startled for a moment before taking a breath. "That is your name."

"Yes, but, you didn't call me _Miss Galinda_. Just _Galinda_."

"And you didn't like it," Elphaba said. "I apologize, _Miss_ Galinda."

"No!" Galinda cried. "I did like it, very much so." As she spoke, she flushed and wished she could hide her face again. "I thought it was a mistake, that's all."

"If you heard that, you must have been awake," Elphaba said slowly, realization dawning. "And if you were awake, you must have known you were grabbing my arm." She put down her book and frowned. "I stayed awake for an hour, trying to get you to let go."

"You could have just pulled away," Galinda said, laughing.

"You looked comfortable," Elphaba murmured. "It was late."

Galinda smiled. "You're sweet, Elphie."

Elphaba drew her long legs up to her chest and pressed her back against the trunk of the tree. She looked confused, and slightly fearful. "If you're trying to tease me again, don't bother."

"What?" Galinda blurted out, blinking. "I'm not teasing! I'm serious. It's a nickname I thought up last night in the library."

"You really think _that_ suits _me_?"

"Not when you're looking at me like that," Galinda said. "You might try, Miss Elphaba, but you can't frighten me away." Galinda pouted and shuffled closer. "I thought of the name to remind you that you aren't as awful as you think you are." At that, Elphaba narrowed her eyes, but stretched her legs back out. "I'll keep calling you it until you understand, Elphie."

Elphaba had her shoulders high, a stiffness in her posture that only strengthened when Galinda moved over and sat by her side against the tree. The two of them were squashed together and Galinda almost smiled at the sound of Elphaba's shallow breathing. The green girl's book lay forgotten in her lap, so Galinda scooped it up and examined the cover. To her wonder, it was a romance novel, or so Galinda gathered from the gaudy cover. Elphaba was finally bought to attention and snatched the book from Galinda's grasp.

"Odd," Galinda mused. "What are you reading that for?"

"Research purposes. Nothing else."

Galinda smirked. "Research, hmm?"

"That's what I said. I wanted to see if these characters fall in love as unrealistically as yours did."

"And?" Galinda asked, somewhat insulted.

"I find the whole thing repulsive."

"That's because you've never been in love."

"You sound like Boq. Perhaps you're better suited than you thought."

"I would take offense, but the power of love has too strong a grip on my heart," Galinda exclaimed, pressing her hand to her chest.

"Save the theatrics for the performance."

Galinda smiled and peeked over Elphaba's shoulder, eyeing the book. "Have you learnt much at all?"

"Only that humans are shallow creatures. But I did know that already."

"What a terrible thing to say," Galinda cried.

"Probably. But it's the truth."

"Haven't you ever loved anyone?" Galinda already knew the answer.

"What do you think? As of yet, no one has been brave enough to risk having me fall in love with them. That's assuming I'm capable of such a thing." Elphaba gave a shake of her head. "Most people lack the stomach to come near me, much less hazard a conversation and even fewer would ever touch me, even if I were to bribe them."

"But what if somebody did want to touch you, and talk to you? To get to know you?" Galinda's hand stretched out, reaching for a green one, but stopped. She was being too forward again! Doing this to Elphaba wasn't fair. She would have to be more subtle, even if that was something she wasn't used to. Galinda always knew what she was doing when it came to making friends or charming boys. More often than not, she wouldn't have much work to do at all. All she had to be was herself - Galinda, the beautiful popular girl. Elphaba's friendship would prove a far more complicated thing to obtain.

"I'd call them a liar and send them on their way."

Galinda sighed. "So you plan on getting old and dying all alone?"

"If that happens I wouldn't object to it."

"Oh, what an awful prospect for life."

"For you, perhaps," Elphaba said. "If I ever find somebody willing to put up with me, I'll let you know."

"I'm willing to put up with you, if you hadn't noticed." Galinda frowned. "Though I couldn't tell you why," she added quietly. Beside her, Elphaba's nose was back in the stupid book. Galinda was wracking her brain for something else to say when she caught sight of him, clumsily waving at them both as he made his way over. Her heart skipped a beat and she nearly toppled over into Elphaba's lap. With a flick of her fan she attempted to hide the embarrassment on her face.

"Miss Galinda! Miss Elphaba!" Boq's voice called between heavy breaths.

Galinda watched Elphaba put her book into her pocket. So _she_ wasn't good enough company but Boq was? She chewed her lip and flicked her fan closed. "Master Boq, how nice to see you," she said sweetly.

It had the desired effect. Boq melted onto the grass before her, hot and bothered and struggling to get any words out. Galinda's smile widened. It had been a while since she'd been able to flaunt herself around boys, and although Boq was not her first choice, or even her last, she enjoyed it all the same.

"I finally managed to drill it into Miss Galinda's brain," Elphaba said stiffly.

"I - I don't know what to say," he stuttered.

"Nothing will do."

"Thank you, Miss Galinda, for remembering," Boq said, ignoring the green girl.

"My dear Master Boq, there's no need for that."

He smiled and moved over to sit beneath the tree, a crumpled piece of paper in his hands. "I heard you've both been busy."

"And where did you hear that?" Elphaba asked.

The Munchkin boy blushed, and Galinda saw a bead of sweat drip from his nose. "Well," Boq began, rubbing the back of his neck. Galinda was staring at him, heart pounding. His eyes met hers and that was it, he seemed to melt once again. "I heard Miss Pfannee say she saw you entering the library together yesterday." At that, Galinda clenched her fists. "I'm sorry, Miss Galinda... it's difficult not to hear her."

"She does have a big mouth," Elphaba agreed, though she didn't seem half as angry as Galinda.

"What could she possibly hope to do to me now? I already feel like the most hated person at Shiz."

"Not while I'm here," Elphaba reassured her.

Boq shifted uncomfortably. "I hope you don't think this means I enjoy being around her. It's all Avaric's fault, he's the one all the girls like."

"Let her say what she likes. Sooner or later she'll get bored, as boring people do," Elphaba said.

Galinda nodded. "You're right. I shouldn't let someone like her upset me just because she's more popular than me now." A feeling of dread flooded her. "She's more popular than me now!" Without thinking, she grabbed Elphaba's arm. "Is this how she felt when I was more popular than her?"

Both Boq and Elphaba exchanged concerned glances. "Galinda, snap out of it," Elphaba eventually said. "You have far more important things to worry yourself over than Miss Pfannee."

"Which brings me to what I wanted to ask you about," Boq chimed in, cheeks red.

Galinda, feeling stupid, took a breath and sat up straight. "Yes?"

"When you were in the library yesterday... what exactly were you doing?"

"Studying!" Galinda exclaimed.

"We were rewriting the script," Elphaba said, just a second after Galinda's uncertain outburst.

Surprisingly, Boq grinned. "That's what I wanted to hear!" He leaned over and handed Galinda the piece of paper. "Here." Some of the ink had smudged and the paper was torn in some places, but Galinda could still make out most of it. A list - of what seemed to be ideas for the musical. "I thought you might need some help."

"Oh. Thank you, Master Boq, but you see... Elphie and I, we-"

"I was up all night, thinking of you... both. In the library. I would've joined you if I could."

Galinda could see Elphaba awkwardly look away, as if she were trying to give them some privacy. Galinda panicked and tugged on Elphaba's sleeve. "Look, Elphie, aren't they good ideas?"

"I come from a musically gifted family, didn't I tell you?" Boq said proudly. Galinda couldn't help but notice that for once he wasn't a spluttering mess. "My father played the violin, and my grandfather was a famed composer. We still have some of his sheet music hidden away somewhere back home."

Galinda widened her eyes. A composer! And in Boq's family? She wouldn't deny her surprise. She wondered whether the music in Munchkinland was any different than the music she had grown up with. "Master Boq, are you really telling the truth?"

"Of course! I wish I could show you. If only I had the music here with me," he said, a little downtrodden.

But Galinda couldn't wipe the smile off her face. "Master Boq, I'm so glad you're here!"

"Hm? What?"

"I'm having trouble with some of the songs. Miss Greyling helped me before, of course, but well, I'm no great songwriter. Nor have I a famed composer for a grandfather."

Boq turned bright red. "Well, I'm not my grandfather," he said sheepishly. "B-but I'll help in any way I can!" As soon as Galinda smiled, his hesitation disappeared. "How many songs have you written?"

"Oh!" Galinda cried. "Thirteen altogether, including a couple of reprises in Act Two."

"You've thought this through quite a bit, Miss Galinda," Boq said, grinning.

"What can I say? I'm a perfectionist." She wavered for a moment, watching Boq struggle to think of a reply. "Though, there is one particular song that needs more work than the others."

"What's wrong with it?"

"It's a little..." Galinda sighed. "Elphie says it's silly."

At the mention of her name, Elphaba frowned. "Don't bring me into this."

"What's so silly about it?"

"It's about the Princess beautifying herself before the ball," Galinda said, prompting a scoff from Elphaba.

"Well... my grandfather used to tell me that a great song is defined by the feeling behind it. The person has to feel so strongly that they burst into song."

Elphaba only rolled her eyes. "I don't know about you, but brushing my hair doesn't rouse much feeling other than boredom."

"If the Princess had some feelings about the ball she could sing about while getting ready..."

"Oh, good idea, Master Boq!" Galinda squealed. "Well, she'd be nervous about meeting the Prince, and having to dance in front of him. I'm not so good at dancing myself. In fact when I was young-" she trailed off, noticing the stupid bashful look on Boq's face. He was looking at her as if she were just as smitten as he was, which angered and embarrassed her in equal amounts.

"I'm leaving," Elphaba announced, throwing Galinda into a panic.

"Where are you going?" she asked desperately, rising to her feet at the same time as her friend. "We need you."

"What do you need me for?" Elphaba asked. "I'm not a songwriter." Without waiting for an answer, she walked off, book in hand like it always was.

Galinda parted her lips to call after her, but couldn't bring herself to say anything. She sat back down, greeted by a grinning Boq. "Neither am I," she murmured.

* * *

For all her dismay at being left alone with Boq, Galinda really did appreciate his help. The two of them had spent the week rearranging her songs, though not without a heavy heart. It didn't feel right to change anything about them after all her hard work, but even she had to admit that they were somewhat improved afterwards. Boq seemed confident enough in the little his grandfather had taught him. He'd even stopped stuttering when talking to her, and the irritating little things he used to do seemed forgotten. Was he trying to impress her? Galinda had pondered the question countless times during their after-class meetings, finding herself shaking it off every time Boq spoke. It seemed that even he hadn't noticed his change in behavior, which was more than a relief to Galinda. Now she could befriend him without feeling any guilt. She only hoped it would last.

After all, bigger problems were plaguing her. Mostly in the form of Elphaba, who Galinda hadn't had a proper conversation with since the day she'd been left alone with Boq. The blonde would have liked to think it was _her_ that was avoiding the green girl, but to her annoyance it was the other way around. And being avoided by Elphaba was an ache she could do without. It felt like they were enemies again, their only interactions an uncomfortable glance here or a disgruntled comment there. Galinda didn't like it one bit. Whatever she did or whatever she said, Elphaba would drift away, just as Galinda thought she had a good hold of her.

So when Elphaba came barreling into their room one late afternoon and interrupted Galinda's nap, a reward she told herself she'd earned, the blonde knew she had to say something - if only for her sanity. She already feared it was slipping due to all the stress, and the sleepless nights were taking a toll on her complexion.

Elphaba had no qualms about how loud she was being, even though she must have seen Galinda laying there, sheets pulled up to her face. The squeak of Elphaba's musty old mattress told Galinda that the green girl was finally settled, and no doubt reading. Galinda rolled over, gave a yawn that was undoubtedly fake, and wiggled herself upright. It was all an act, of course. But Elphaba wasn't watching it.

"Where have you been?"

"Library," Elphaba mumbled.

"I should have known that's where you've been hiding," Galinda said quietly, taking the opportunity to fix her hair. "I haven't seen much of you this week."

"You must consider yourself lucky."

"Why haven't you been speaking to me?"

Elphaba turned a page in her book. "You've been busy."

Galinda pursed her lips and drew her sheets up underneath her chin. "Yes, but I still needed your help. I've been trying to keep our secret from Master Boq."

"Our secret?" Elphaba blurted out.

It was then that Galinda felt like burying herself beneath her sheets completely. "I meant... about the Prince being killed off." Elphaba nodded slowly, keeping her eyes glued to Galinda. "It's been torture trying to keep quiet about it! Every time he'd look at me I thought my tongue would betray me and let it slip. But I endured it, just for you."

"Galinda, it isn't a secret. You could have told him yourself."

"You told me to leave it to you!" Galinda cried. "But all you've done is walk around with your nose in that book, not even acknowledging our existence."

Elphaba stared at her, making her feel like such a fool. "I didn't expect you to care."

"It's in my nature to care," Galinda protested, a little too quickly. "Your absence isn't an easy thing to ignore."

Elphaba snorted. "Because I'm green."

"No, because I fear, well, I'm more confident with you around."

Elphaba didn't smile, but she looked slightly amused, her dark eyes searching Galinda's face for any sign of mocking. The smaller girl stared back, taking in the image of Elphaba with her hair disheveled, the last of the sun pouring through the window and casting her shadow across the wall. Under Galinda's gaze, Elphaba shifted and looked away. "I'll speak to Boq about it tomorrow."

"Good," Galinda said, still staring. "You'll have to be quick about it, though. We have rehearsal tomorrow afternoon." That made Elphaba turn to her again, baffled. "No need to look at me like that. Everything is perfect."

"What about the script?"

"I was forced to take advantage of this empty room while you were away," Galinda said, crossing her arms. "I've been awake until the early hours of the morning every night this week, writing and then rewriting." Elphaba glared at her. "And yes, I did borrow your notes."

"Galinda," Elphaba said. "You should have fetched me."

" _You_ didn't seem to want my company."

Elphaba frowned. "If I'd known-"

"It's no matter," Galinda interrupted, waving Elphaba off with a hand. "It's all done now."

"Will you at least let me read it?" Elphaba snapped.

Galinda's eyes widened. No matter how happy she was with the new script, she hadn't yet come to terms with having anyone read it. Which she knew was silly, especially with rehearsal only a day away. That didn't stop her stomach from flooding with butterflies, though. "Oh, fine," she groaned, hopping out of bed and over to her desk. The new script was hidden in one of her drawers, tucked beneath a pile of books and difficult for even Galinda to find. With a sigh, she delicately sat herself on the edge of Elphaba's bed. "Before you read it," she said, clutching the script close to her chest. "Just remember that half of the ideas are yours, so you aren't allowed to be mean about it."

Elphaba gave a nod, and took the script from her. She opened it to the first page and looked at Galinda out of the corner of her eye, willing her to leave. But Galinda wouldn't move. She tucked a curl of hair behind her ear and pulled herself further onto the bed, sheets scratching at her bare legs. How Elphaba slept comfortably on such horrid sheets was beyond her, but she still wouldn't move off.

After a while, with not much reaction to the writing, it seemed that Elphaba relented, and she shifted herself over to give Galinda room. The blonde was only small, but she did love to spread herself out. So she did just that, much to Elphaba's annoyance. They both ended up laying next to each other, Galinda keenly waiting for Elphaba's opinion. Every time the green girl beside her made even the slightest movement whether it was a twitch of her fingers or the clench of a jaw, Galinda's heart would skip. It took her a while to calm down upon noticing how close the two were and it was beyond strange to be sharing a bed with Elphaba, their thighs close to touching. Stupidly, Galinda kept inching closer, making the mattress creak in the process. They never touched though, Galinda was far too flustered to bring herself to do that.

A time later, when their room was mostly shadow and Galinda found herself yawning every few minutes, Elphaba handed the script back. Her face didn't betray any emotion, Galinda noted. But when the green girl spoke, voice low, Galinda felt an intense relief. "That was much better."

All the curl of Galinda's hair had slackened and she could hardly keep her eyes open, though neither stopped her from squealing and bobbing up and down. "Thank you so much, Elphie!"

"I'm still not sure about that," Elphaba muttered under her breath.

"Hard work does pay off, then," Galinda mused, gazing down at the script. "Which part was your favorite, though, Elphie? Please tell me."

Elphaba gave her a funny look, arms stiff by her sides. "The Prince's death."

"Oh, really? I was worried it was too much."

"It was just enough."

"But I am surprised you like it," Galinda mused, tapping her chin. "You and Master Boq are good friends."

Elphaba shrugged. "The Prince deserves that death." Galinda had to chuckle. "I'm just glad you changed it so his death isn't by the Witch."

"Yes," Galinda said, looking down at the script and back to Elphaba. "She isn't the villain in this story."

"Then what is she?"

Galinda couldn't tell whether Elphaba was teasing her, but she said, "Misunderstood, I think." Then, with a smile, she slid off the bed and disappeared into the bathroom.

* * *

The next day was spent with a persistent feeling of dread following her around. She'd made sure to let everyone know where to meet, by the large tree behind the orchard, a secluded spot that Elphaba herself had suggested earlier that morning. Boq was the first to know; Galinda made a point to tell him before Elphaba spoke with him, hoping to avoid any repercussions. Milla wasn't difficult to hunt down, but Galinda had only narrowly missed a confrontation with Pfannee and Shenshen on her way to hunt down Avaric. That boy was more trouble than he was worth.

Galinda spent most of Doctor Dillamond's class daydreaming. She would have fallen asleep if it weren't for her foolish wish to sit beside Elphaba, who always sat in the very front. The Goat would have his attention on the green girl for most of the class, so he couldn't miss Galinda's obvious disinterest.

Before long, it was over, and Galinda gave a yawn. "Walk with me, Elphie," she said lazily. They made their way through the courtyard, Galinda shuffling through the script and struggling to keep up with Elphaba's pace. Fiyero stood across from them, in a circle of chattering girls, laughing and joking. If it were any other day, Galinda would have been on her way without a second glance. But the way he was smiling, arms crossed tight across his chest, Galinda couldn't resist. In the middle of conversation, he caught sight of her and ducked his head, sending her a hesitant smile. "Elphie," Galinda began, half in a daydream, "go on without me. I'll meet you there." Elphaba twisted around, but Galinda was already off.

"Galinda," Fiyero said sheepishly. "It's-"

"Good to see me?"

"Yes, actually," he replied, laughing. The huddle of girls scattered, muttering their displeasure. There was a nervousness to Fiyero that reminded Galinda, oddly, of Boq. "I've been meaning to seek you out, to apologize for the things I said - before." He looked her in the eyes. "It wasn't princely of me." With that, he bent over, took her hand and kissed it softly. "Can you forgive me?"

Galinda smiled. "Oh, Fiyero, how can I forgive you if there's nothing to forgive?"

He grinned down at her. "How are things going, without me?"

"Well, they've gotten better," Galinda said, biting her lip. "Master Boq and Elphi- Elphaba have been a great help. Things such as these just aren't a one woman job."

"It sounds like you've found your feet at last."

Galinda tilted her head and clicked her heels. "Certainly." Fiyero laughed. "I'm on my way to rehearsal now, actually. You could come! If you'd like, that is."

"And give Miss Elphaba an excuse to hex me?" His smile fell. "I'd fare better at the Philosophy Club."

"Don't worry about Elphie, the worst she could do is go into one of her _moods_ ," Galinda said, shaking her head. "Please come, Fiyero." Her begs must have worked, because he bent to take her arm in his.

Their stroll was leisurely, which it definitely should not have been - Galinda knew it would earn a grumble from Elphaba. As they walked, Fiyero was surprisingly quiet, presumably mulling over how he would act towards the others.

They came to the tree, up on a little hill, and overlooking the woods that bordered Shiz. Galinda could make out Elphaba's form leaning against it, even through all the green. Boq and Milla were there too, awkwardly sat far from the other, each trying to make conversation with the clearly irritable green girl.

Fiyero seemed to hesitate for a instant, so much so that Galinda broke free from his hold. "Are you coming?" she asked, impatient. She was sweating in the summer sun, which was unbecoming of a lady.

"Yes, sorry," he replied, nodding. Galinda could only think back on how Elphaba had shown him up in class all those days ago. Was it the heat or the embarrassment that was making him sweat so much?

Galinda ran ahead, a light breeze blowing through her hair. Fiyero was hurrying after her, calling her name. She bounded up the low hill, both Boq and Milla waving to her. Elphaba moved further into the shadow of the tree when Fiyero caught up, throwing his arms around Galinda's shoulders. She was reduced to a giggling mess, almost falling onto the grass. Milla laughed too, though Boq was less amused.

"What is _he_ doing here?" Elphaba asked between the laughs. Galinda made Fiyero stop, taking both of his hands in hers.

Fiyero frowned and stopped Galinda before she could say anything. "Miss Elphaba," he said, bowing, "such a pleasure."

"For one of us, at least," the green girl muttered. Galinda took a deep breath before strolling over to her stubborn roomie and grabbing her hand. Elphaba recoiled a bit, digging her heels into the grass. But Galinda wouldn't give in. She glared up at the taller girl, whose face looked a different shade of green beneath the shadow of the tree - and oddly soft. If they'd been alone, the blonde would have stupidly thought to touch her more, and it was only when Boq spoke that Galinda turned back to the others.

"Don't be like that, Miss Elphaba. It's better to have an audience," the Munchkin boy said, grinning. "Isn't that right, Miss Galinda?"

"Of course! How else would we prepare?" Her hand tightened around Elphaba's, yearning to take it properly and drag the green girl into the sun. "Really, Elphie, and you call me childish." Galinda frowned up at her, but Elphaba's dark eyes just continued staring at her, defiant. It was the one thing that annoyed Galinda about her friend, but some part of her also admired it. That admiration must have softened her expression, because Elphaba finally gave in and let Galinda steer her over to the others, who were lazily sat in a circle. "Has anyone seen Master Avaric?"

"Not since class. He did say he had important business to attend to," Boq said.

Fiyero laughed and crossed his legs. "A mild way of saying he's up to no good. He could hardly move the last time I saw him, those girls you used to hang around with were draped all over him. I've never known Avaric to pass up such an opportunity."

"Rehearsing is of much more importance than canoodling with those awful girls," Galinda remarked, annoyed that even when they weren't around Pfannee and Shenshen continued to find ways to torment her.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "He's only the farmer. We can go on without him."

"Each role is equally important, Elphie," Galinda chastised. She sat herself down beside Fiyero, dragging Elphaba along with her. The green girl looked like she might try and run, but Galinda tugged on her arm and with a sigh, Elphaba sat down too.

"Avaric isn't the type to be offended if we were to start without him," Fiyero said. "I should think it's the last thing on his mind."

"That smug clod will no doubt find his way here eventually. I say we let him, and hope he falls in the canal while he's at it."

"Elphie! Mind your tongue!"

"Why should I? He won't be minding his."

"I could always read Master Avaric's lines out," Boq suggested. "If it would make it easier on you."

Galinda nodded. "Bearing in mind that we only have one script at the moment." She could hear Elphaba snort to her right. "I hadn't the time to write out extra ones. And my delicate fingers were growing calloused. If I'd written any more this week I'd have the hands of a blacksmith!"

"It's all right, Miss Galinda," Boq said. "We'll have to take turns."

"That's so very good of you." She looked to Elphaba, silently pleading for a sign that she'd spoken to Boq about the changes to the plot. Nothing. Elphaba was too busy glaring into the distance. "I feel that we should familiarize ourselves with the story before we begin read-throughs," Galinda announced, feeling sick. "Now, I should warn you - Elphaba and I made some drastic changes - ones that perhaps not everyone would agree with, or even like! I myself do, of course. But others, well-"

"Come on, Galinda," Fiyero teased, leaning forward. "Can't you tell how excited we are?"

"You don't have to try and convince us," Boq agreed. "I - _we_ \- know how hard you've been working." Galinda could see Milla hidden behind Boq, looking like she was itching to shuffle closer. The blonde smiled and pointed to the empty space next to Elphaba. Milla nodded and moved over.

"Well, if you insist," she said, and cleared her throat. "It all begins in the future. That is to say, after the events of the play." Boq gave her an odd look. "The Princess now rules over her kingdom, and she's telling her subjects of what became of the Witch." Nervous, Galinda glanced up from the script at Fiyero. "Then, we go back in time." She paused for effect - just like she used to when she would put on little shows as a child. Her parents would always applaud her, or gasp, or cheer. When nothing came other than an obnoxiously wide grin from Boq, Galinda continued. "Anyway, the essence of it is that the Princess is kidnapped during a very important ball. She's meant to pick a husband, you see, and there are many, many suitors."

"That's hardly a surprise when she's played by one as lovely as you," Fiyero interrupted, placing a hand at the small of Galinda's back. Boq fiddled with the buttons on his cardigan while Elphaba looked like she was trying her best not to roll her eyes at the display.

Though Galinda, red in the face, carried on. "Only one man catches her eye, out of the countless that try to win her heart. He's sweet and kind and everything a girl - no, a Princess - looks for in a husband." She should have been looking at Boq, but Fiyero was all that was commanding her attention. "They dance all night, hand in hand, gazing into each other's eyes."

"That's... me. Isn't it?" Boq suddenly asked, looking between Elphaba and Galinda.

Startled by the interruption, Galinda made herself nod a few times. "Yes, Master Boq, but this man - oh, Elphie, should I say?"

"Say what you like."

Galinda scrunched her nose at Elphaba's bluntness. "This Prince - he has a dark secret."

"Is there any other kind?" the green girl remarked.

"A dark secret?" Fiyero said. "That can't be good."

Elphaba scoffed. "What gave you that idea?"

Galinda had no time to try and simmer down the tension brewing on either side of her - she was too worried over how quiet Boq had grown. "I pray you don't take offense, Master Boq, but after all the changes I needed a villain."

"Miss Elphaba was the villain," Fiyero said, before Boq could open his mouth. "What changed?"

Galinda took a deep breath. "I've learnt quite a bit about storytelling over the past week, and anyone with half a brain would already assume that Elphaba was the villain before the story even began!"

"Yes, because you'd already announced it to everybody at Shiz with working ears," Elphaba grumbled, though not with malice.

"Even so," Galinda said, sending the green girl a playful glare, "I personally believe the twist to be masterful. I gasped to myself when I thought it up!"

"Don't get too ahead of yourself, Galinda," Fiyero warned. "Not until we know what this twist is."

"Yes, what's the Prince's dark secret?" Milla asked, and leaned forward, her usual timid demeanor left behind.

Galinda froze. Now that she had an audience, albeit a small one, together with a stubborn Elphaba who wouldn't admit her interest and a downtrodden looking Boq, she was firmly rooted between crippling fear and over the top excitement. This is what she had wanted all along. "You're all just dying to know, I can see it! But you'll have to wait." Fiyero looked a strange mixture of disappointed and surprised, making Galinda laugh. "Kidding, kidding. Oh, Fiyero, your face!" Galinda straightened her back and tucked a lock of stray hair behind her ear. "The Prince plans to rescue the Princess."

Milla put her hand to her chest. "That's it?"

"I've not studied a dictionary," Fiyero began, and Elphaba snorted. "But there isn't anything 'dark' about that."

The small group slipped into a low hum of bewilderment, Fiyero the loudest of them all. Elphaba was the only quiet one, although she did seem thoroughly entertained by the others' confusion.

"And _kill_ her," Galinda then declared. The way Fiyero turned to look at her, eyebrows raised, made her giddy with pride.

"Kill her?" Boq croaked.

Fiyero rolled up his sleeves. "I have to say, I didn't see that coming."

"That was my intention," Galinda said proudly. "The Princess loves-" Elphaba eyed her, daring her to say it. "The Princess _thinks_ she could come to love him, but he only has eyes for her crown. It's _such_ a tragedy."

"He's already a Prince," Boq said absentmindedly. When the four of them turned to him, he flushed. "Why would he want her crown if he's already a Prince?"

Galinda blanched. "That's simple. He's the Prince of a neighboring land, he's become power crazed!"

"This doesn't sound-"

"Very clever, Galinda," Fiyero cheered, boisterously throwing his arm about her shoulders. "Who'd have imagined the heroic Prince would turn out to be the villain?"

"Looks are only looks," Elphaba said. "A charming face can hide a lot."

Fiyero laughed. "How poetic you are, Miss Elphaba."

"It wasn't meant to be."

"An accidental poet!" he exclaimed, pulling Galinda in closer. "Even more impressive."

"What do you think of all this, Master Boq?" Elphaba asked.

At that, Galinda pulled herself away from Fiyero. She'd hoped she could trust Elphaba by now, but there was an odd look in the green girl's eye. Why was it she could never figure her out? Would she ever?

"I think," the Munchkin boy started, blushing furiously. All eyes were on him and he was a blubbering mess. "I think..." Galinda crossed her arms. How Boq would be able to perform in front of an audience when he couldn't form a sentence in the presence of friends worried her. "I think it's a good twist, Miss Galinda."

Then, Milla chuckled, surprising everyone else. When Galinda asked what was wrong, the girl's shyness returned. She looked away, red-faced, and said, "Oh, nothing. It's just - how could anybody see poor Master Boq as a villain? He's much too-" The Munchkin boy looked like he was holding his breath. "M-much too... sweet."

Galinda laughed. Boq was little, and that was the only way she could think to describe him. A little shy and a little sweet. She couldn't deny him that. "You're right! Master Boq, you'll need some tuition in how to be, what's the word, wicked?"

"History, Life Science, Sorcery," Elphaba listed, turning Galinda's grin into a grimace. "There isn't a class for wickedness."

"Sweet Oz, does she live to suck the fun out of everything?" Fiyero groaned, finally giving in and letting himself fall backwards onto the grass, hands cradling his head. "I think we've found you a tutor, Master Boq."

Galinda elbowed Fiyero in the ribs. "Stop it, Fiyero." She turned to Elphaba, who didn't look particularly offended or hurt. Elphaba had the thickest skin of anyone in Oz. And she'd needed to, for all the bullying and rejection she had endured. Still, Galinda frowned and wriggled her way over to take the green girl's arm. "You aren't wicked, Elphie," she said, as quietly as she could, leaning up against the taller girl. As the words left her lips, Elphaba's eyes searched her face.

"You've changed your tune," the green girl replied.

"I've changed more than just that." The sun was painting Elphaba's skin different shades of green, distracting Galinda for a moment. "But I mean it, you know, you aren't wicked. Not from what I've seen of you."

Elphaba scowled. "That isn't much."

"Yes, because you're... _you_! You won't let me see more, even when I'm _desperate_ to!" Elphaba didn't say anything. Her eyes were narrow and her cheeks were dark, green lips tightly pressed together as if she was trying to hold something back. "Elphie? Are you all right?"

"Miss Galinda?" Boq called. "Miss Milla and-"

"What?" Galinda managed to say, reluctantly turning away from her green friend, though not letting her go.

"You didn't finish telling us what happens," Boq reminded her.

"Oh! I'm sorry," Galinda squeaked. "Where was I?"

"You-"

"Yes, the Prince is on his way to rescue me," she began, struggling to turn pages with just one hand. "I'm being kept in - what does that say? Elphie?"

"Tower," Elphaba said stiffly.

"That's right. The Witch lives in the tower too, so she can keep a close eye on her captive. It's a fairly tall tower, and not at all shabby! It's well furnished, the room. Nothing like the dorms here at Shiz."

Milla and Boq looked at each other, confused. "The Princess and the Witch share a room?" he asked.

Fiyero swiftly sat up. "That's unheard of."

Elphaba didn't even look his way. "Much like your singing voice, fortunately for us."

"So many things in stories are unheard of, Fiyero!" Galinda argued. "I hadn't heard of evil sorceresses who can magic themselves into any shape they desire until last week when I read Elphie's book!"

"That sounds an awful lot like Morrible," Elphaba said, expressionless. Boq burst into laughter and even Galinda had to smile, even though she'd been attempting to be serious. "An unfortunate shape, in her case."

"The Prince rides off on his horse," Galinda said, loudly, while Boq wiped a tear from his eye. "Though he hasn't any notion of where the Princess is being held."

"Most would call that bravery," Boq interrupted, a hopeful smile on his face.

Elphaba shrugged. "In my experience, brave is just another word for stupid."

"This Prince sounds like a bit of both," Fiyero said.

"It's a pity you're not playing him," Elphaba replied. "But then I suppose he would be cowering in a corner and twice as stupid."

Galinda wanted to slap her hand over Elphaba's foul mouth, and perhaps kick Fiyero in the shin with her heel, but instead she carried on, head held high. "The Prince charms many people on his search, including the farmer and the milkmaid-"

Fiyero laughed. "Don't tell Avaric that."

"Maybe _charm_ isn't the right word," Galinda pondered.

"As Munchkinlanders go, Master Boq is as charming as one can be," Elphaba added.

Galinda grinned at the green girl. "My, Elphie, you're finally coming around to the idea of compliments, aren't you?"

"It was rather backhanded," Boq said, pouting.

"It's the best you could hope to receive from Elphaba," Galinda said, laughing. "Until she learns some proper manners."

"I wouldn't hold your breath," Fiyero teased.

"I _would_ hold yours if I were you," the green girl fired back, effectively stunning him.

"Well I think you should _both_ hold your _tongues_ ," Galinda eventually said. Her ears had grown sore from all the bickering on either side of her, though she refused to move - that would mean letting go of Elphie, who she had in her grasp finally. Galinda's hand was tucked inside the crook of Elphaba's arm. Despite herself, she'd been wanting to slip her own arm the whole way through, but she already knew Elphaba would give her that half disgusted, half fearful look again. She would rather not give the green girl another reason to hide away. "And now I've lost my place." With a huff, Galinda spread out the script across both her and Elphaba's laps, lightly touching her roommate's thigh while she was at it. Elphaba didn't seem offended, or scared - or any of the terrible things Galinda could think up. Though her brown eyes did look slightly glazed over behind her glasses. "After traveling for days and nights without sleep, the Prince begins to show his true colors." Fiyero raised an eyebrow. "When he rides into the next village, looking for the Princess, he threatens to burn it to a crisp if the villagers don't provide him with information," Galinda said, delivering the line with uncertainty. The small group, excluding Elphaba, watched her with wide eyes and open mouths. Milla looked the most mortified, followed by Boq. The poor boy seemed to grow more nervous each time Galinda spoke.

"That's just... awful," Milla whimpered.

Fiyero nodded himself out of his daydream. "I have to agree, Galinda. However did such a pretty head conjure up something so foul?"

Galinda found herself frowning. _Pretty_. A compliment from Fiyero would have turned her cheeks red and her head giddy, if it hadn't been such a veiled remark. A pretty head! Was that all she was? Was that all he thought of her? She was starting to question his belief in her - in anything but her appearance.

But before Galinda could burst out with something she would regret, she felt Elphaba move beside her. The green girl looked at her out of the corner of her eye and said, "It's not difficult for someone with a brain." Galinda lost her breath, and her voice, all in the space of a second. "Galinda has more of an imagination than you would think," Elphaba continued. "It just happens that she also has a pretty head."

Blood rushed to the blonde's cheeks. She'd need to spend some time repeating the words over and over in her head before she could even hope to trust what she'd heard. If her ears had betrayed her, she would surely cry herself to sleep that night.

In the midst of her daydreaming, she felt eyes watching her. Boq was grinning the way he always did, concealing a laugh. Milla, too, was smiling, though much less enthusiastically than the Munchkin boy sat cross legged beside her. But it was Fiyero that Galinda sharply turned to face. As expected, he looked just as embarrassed and baffled as he had the last time Elphaba had put him in his place. The fact that Elphie had done so in defence of her made Galinda's chest swell with pride and her stomach flood with butterflies - pleasant butterflies, that made her feel she could fly.

"Grim as it is," she said, head high. "It's only a story."

"What happens to the Prince?" Milla piped up.

"Oh, he dies a horrible death."

"Sweet Oz," Fiyero huffed, holding his hands up and feigning surrender.

"The King's men, who have also been searching for the Princess, catch up to him and witness his horrendousness towards the townspeople," Galinda said. "They chase him through the forest." She looked back down at the script. "On foot! It's very exciting, if I do say so myself. Eventually he tires some and stumbles into the darker part of the woods, where he is mauled by a lion." A silence fell, and the sun hid itself behind a cloud. Galinda quickly grew impatient with the uncomfortable silence. "Well?"

Milla was the first to brave a response. "Miss Galinda, it's... perfect!" she squeaked. Had the over the top reaction come from Pfannee or Shenshen, Galinda might have laughed it off, or turned her nose up at it. But Milla did seem a genuine girl, and Galinda suddenly regretted her arrogance and ignorance towards her in the past. She had thought the quiet girl a snob, or simply an odd social recluse type. She had been wrong about a lot of things then. And so the shy smile on Milla's pale face forced Galinda to smile back. "It's just what he deserves!"

"Oh, I _know_. I'm not known to be a violent person but I wracked my brain for the most horrid death imaginable!"

"I feel sorry for the poor creature," Elphaba said. "I can't imagine anyone willing to take Boq in their mout-"

"Elphaba!" Galinda cried, not even having the time to try and conceal her embarrassment, as she was swiftly reminded of the Munchkin boy sat across from her. He hadn't said much, which led her to believe he wasn't at all happy with her plot changes. Her heart hammered in her chest and she had to clear her throat a few times before she gathered the courage to ask him, "You aren't angry with me, are you, my dear Master Boq?" And then she smiled slightly, a nervous attempt to win him over.

At first he didn't say anything, his lips twitching at the sides. "I'm not angry, Miss Galinda," he finally said. "Just... nervous."

Galinda groaned. "I apologize, Master Boq, for not telling you that the Prince would die sooner, it's just-"

Boq widened his eyes. "No, Miss Galinda, I knew I would die!"

"Everybody does," Elphaba cut in.

"I knew the _Prince_ would die," Boq corrected, nodding his head in Elphaba's direction. "Miss Elphaba told me this morning."

Surprised, Galinda turned to her roomie, accidently swatting her with a faceful of golden curls. Elphaba leaned away, sending the shorter girl an exasperated look. But all Galinda could do was grin. So Elphaba _had_ kept her word. It wasn't that Galinda thought her green friend was scatter-brained enough to forget or mean enough to not do it just to spite her, though Elphaba did have a wicked mean streak, she just hadn't expected Elphaba to care enough to do something that would help her.

"It - doesn't bother you at all?" Galinda asked.

"It did! It does... just a little. It would have been nice to be the hero," Boq said, picking at the grass. "But when you said that the Prince would be the villain, and not the Witch... I - I was happy with that."

Galinda blinked. "You were? Why?"

"Well... It means you're starting to see Miss Elphaba as a... friend," Boq stuttered, his eyes darting back and forth between the two roommates. Galinda could see how much he wanted it to be true.

" _We're_ friends too, Master Boq," she said quickly. "And that won't change, even when you're mauled to death by that lion!"

"Friendship still eludes me," Elphaba muttered.

"So what happens to the Princess, now that the Prince is dead? She's doomed, isn't she?" Fiyero asked, suddenly showing interest again. His hair was an unruly mess as he sat up beside her, and there were a few grass stains on his white shirt. "There isn't much a girl can do when facing a Witch."

"Oh, no, does the Princess die too?" Milla whined.

"I'm not as bloodthirsty as that!" Galinda cried, before composing herself once again. "The two of them befriend each other, after a shaky start, of course. The Witch has lived a lonely life, you must understand. All she ever wanted was some company - a friend!"

"Though it's not advised to begin a friendship with a kidnapping," Elphaba added.

Fiyero was cringing, attempting to hide a laugh. "You've killed the Prince, and now the Princess and the Witch are - what - going to bond over pretty dresses and become the best of friends?"

"The Witch would rather die," Elphaba spat.

"Pretty dresses have nothing to do with it, Fiyero," Galinda said, annoyed. "Clothes and silly boys aren't the only things we girls talk about!" And yet, in her heart, Galinda knew she had been one of those girls, and not so long ago either. She felt her cheeks grow hot with shame, though no one noticed. Not even Fiyero, who was staring right at her, opening and closing his mouth but not saying a word. "And besides, I'm positive Elphie would kill me if I even tried to make her act as if she were interested in dresses and hats and shoes!"

"Because I'm not vain," Elphaba countered. "I can't afford to be - not when I look like this."

Galinda's smile fell. "I meant it as a joke!"

"Well, I think it's a nice idea, Miss Galinda," Milla said quietly.

Boq nodded, taking a long look at the shy girl. "Something like that - it's never been done before."

"The hero and the villain, friends!" Milla cried, smiling towards Boq. The Munchkin boy grinned back, absentmindedly brushing his dirty hands on the front of his cardigan.

"You're both too kind," Galinda said, and part of her meant it. There was some embarrassment behind her pride. She'd known the revised script was better - otherwise Elphaba would have been honest with her and told her to rewrite it another time. But hearing others tell her it was good, that filled her with an uncomfortable mixture of emotions. And mainly because she'd let so much of her real feelings leak into her writing. It didn't help that most of those feelings concerned Elphaba and her book. "It takes quite a while, as any true friendship does," she said, "but I won't get into all that-"

But before she could finish, Milla had forced her to get into it. Script in hand, Galinda explained the relationship between the Princess and the Witch in detail, to the delight of Milla and the vague interest of Boq and Fiyero. The sun would peek out from behind the clouds every now and again and the light breeze would rustle the leaves of the nearby tree.

Elphaba spent the whole time glaring into the distance, which didn't go unnoticed by Galinda. The blonde took a wild guess that the green girl was keeping an eye out for Avaric, just so she could be the first one to chastise him if he ever decided to show his face. But there was an empty look in her eyes that Galinda couldn't put her finger on. And, much to her annoyance, it proved horribly distracting.

Not as distracting, though, as the few droplets of rain that slid down the back of her dress, running a cold path down her back. She shivered and looked up to the sky. The clouds were grey, the air crisp and before Galinda could look back down, Elphaba had torn herself away and scurried over to shelter beneath the tree. Boq and Milla clumsily followed, the Munchkin boy shyly lending her a hand.

Galinda yelped when Fiyero grabbed her from behind, hoisting her up as if she were a baby. If she wasn't so concerned about the script - or her hair, she might have complained. But it already looked like the ink was running and Galinda could only imagine how much of a nightmare her makeup had become.

"Wait, Fiyero, look!" she squealed, noticing one of the pages tear and fly off. It was being battered by the rain as Fiyero ran after it, hand outstretched. She could hear Boq stifle a chuckle behind her, and it was comical - seeing Fiyero flustered. But she couldn't bring herself to laugh when all she wanted to do was cry.

Eventually, he'd managed to get a hold of the missing page, which by now was a complete mess - stained almost entirely black by the ink. Fiyero handed it back to her, an apologetic smile on his face. She forced herself to smile back, wondering if he could tell just how upset she really was. They both trudged their way back to the tree, not caring about how wet they were.

Milla hurried to Galinda's side, hugging her arm. "Oh, Miss Galinda!"

"It was only the one page, wasn't it?" Boq asked, teeth chattering.

Galinda nodded. "Yes, but-" she started, before she was encircled by Fiyero's sopping wet arms. It wasn't a pleasant hug, not warm or romantic, especially not with the way she was forced to press her face into his damp shirt. But he rubbed her back and pulled her as close as she could be.

When he finally let go and pulled back, Boq and Milla rushed to avert their eyes. "Paper dries," he said, smiling, as if he hadn't stated the obvious.

Galinda opened her mouth, intending to speak - to thank him, for what, she wasn't sure. But she only ended up looking past Fiyero, to Elphaba. The stubborn green girl was stood, stiff, behind Boq, presumably using him as a human shield against the rain. The tree provided adequate shelter, of course, but it clearly wasn't enough to calm her roomie's distress. Elphaba's eyes were narrow slits, peering through the gap between Milla and Boq. She looked shaken, terrified, and Galinda found it hard not to notice the way she was clenching her jaw every time a gust of wind threatened to blow rain through the branches and soak them all. "Elphie!" she cried, and almost tripped trying to get to her.

With a flinch, Elphaba backed away. "You can't touch me," she said through gritted teeth, looking between Galinda and Fiyero, eyes suddenly wide. For once she didn't seem angry or even irritated with the prince. Only sad, and deeply shaken, eyeing both Galinda and Fiyero carefully. It wasn't often that Galinda saw such emotion from Elphaba. It seemed to her that the green girl did her best to avoid showing any weakness, even to Galinda - the person she, perhaps unwillingly, spent the most time with.

Wiping her hands on the drenched skirts of her dress, knowing it was useless but doing it anyway, Galinda took a small step forward. "I won't touch you," she said. "Just tell me you aren't hurt."

"What's this? Hurt?" Fiyero interrupted. "Galinda, it's only rain!"

"Elphie's allergic to water," she replied, not looking up.

"What?" Fiyero blurted out. "You can't be serious!"

"I can, and I am!"

"What happens if she touches it?"

Slowly, Elphaba took a step forward. "It burns me," she said. "But if I'd been caught out there without shelter I'd already be a puddle in the grass, on my way down the hill to join the Suicide Canal."

Galinda wasn't surprised at Elphaba's nonchalant attitude towards death, but it didn't stop her from shaking her head. "Elphie, you shouldn't-"

"Shouldn't what?" she snapped, glaring at Galinda in a way that sent a shiver down her spine.

"Well, charming," the blonde huffed. "I try to help and this is the thanks I get!"

"I never asked for your help."

"You could've at least answered my question!"

Elphaba straightened up. "I didn't need to. I'm fine. You can go back to warming yourself in _his_ arms now."

Galinda widened her eyes, ready to stomp over to her horrid, stubborn roomie and make her look her in the eye. That was before her heel snapped off in the mud, sending her forward with a shriek. Milla chimed in with an equally shrill scream, and the last thing she saw as she fell forward was a blur of blue and green - which she presumed was a startled Boq and Elphaba. Neither of them grabbed her, though. Neither of them stopped her from dirtying her clothes any more. That was Fiyero.

Galinda moaned as he pulled her up, struggling to wipe the stray strands of hair out of her face. "What did I do to deserve this?" she groaned, attempting to wrench her foot free from the mud.

"You wore shoes with heels," Elphaba said.

"How was I to know it would rain?" Galinda snapped, growing less and less patient, until she noticed Elphaba's hand on her shoulder, keeping her from faltering. It was the only warmth she could feel, when the rest of her body felt frozen and wet and uncomfortable. Her toes were stiff and numb and her drenched hair stuck to her cheeks, but all of it didn't seem to matter - not if Elphaba was touching her, freely, without Galinda having made the first move. "Elphie," she whispered, then almost fell again when Fiyero, who she hadn't even known was still holding her up, moved away. Galinda grimaced. So long as Elphaba's hand remained on her shoulder, Fiyero's presence wasn't missed.

Though her heart sank when Elphaba sucked in a breath and looked like she was desperate to back away. It finally dawned on Galinda just how silly she'd been. Her clothes were wet, of course! How did she forget? How could she forget? All of her concerns over her beautiful dress and her stupid shoes escaped her, and all she wanted to do was take Elphaba's hand in her own and make it better, to rub the pain away and wrap it in bandages - perhaps even... kiss it? Galinda sniffed and quickly shook the thought from her mind.

"Elphie," she said, and laid her hand atop Elphaba's. She still wouldn't step away, despite the awful pain she must have been in. "You can let go," Galinda murmured, selfishly hoping she wouldn't.

Elphaba shrugged. "There's no point now."

"Thank you for helping me," Galinda said, heart thumping.

"I only did it so you wouldn't complain my ear off about your ruined dress," Elphaba admitted, though the darker shade of green her skin became, the harder it was for Galinda to really believe it.

"Elphie, look at me, it's already ruin-"

Behind them, Fiyero cleared his throat. "Aren't you forgetting the _real_ hero, Galinda?"

Elphaba slowly pulled her hand away, allowing Galinda to turn to the drenched Fiyero. His hair was soggy and dripping and his shirt was almost see-through from how wet it was. Holding in a laugh, Galinda shook her head. Beyond the branches, the sky was brightening up; though the same couldn't be said for Galinda's mood. So far their attempted rehearsals had been utter failures and she could just tell by the way Boq and Elphaba were watching her that they thought the same.

As the sun broke free from the clouds, Fiyero ventured out from under the tree. Boq and Milla followed, but Elphaba stayed put, arms crossed. A few wobbly steps took Galinda over to her green friend and she tentatively took her arm, looking up at her with cautious eyes. With how Elphaba had been acting before, Galinda worried that perhaps she'd be in for another trip into the mud, properly this time. However, Elphaba nodded, surprising even herself, if the bemused look on her face was anything to go by.

The two of them made their way into the sun, probably more comically than Galinda could bare to admit. Her heel was still broken, after all. But with the sight of Avaric approaching, his nice clothes just as ruined as hers, Galinda didn't mind.

"Avaric!" Fiyero called out. "Where in Oz have you been?"

"In the rain," he said with a grimace, clapping his friend on the back. When he turned to Elphaba and Galinda, eyebrows raised, dark red lipstick marks could be seen on his neck and jaw; badly concealed. He'd clearly tried to rub them off, but Galinda knew smudged lipstick marks when she saw them.

"You should have been here," Galinda chastised. "You should be taking rehearsals seriously like the rest of us!"

Avaric shrugged and gestured to Fiyero. "You can't be taking it too seriously. It looks like you're letting any old riff-raff in."

"Ah, that explains why you were cast," Fiyero teased.

"Galinda, you're the expert," Elphaba cut in, and Galinda felt her heart race. "Isn't that the same shade of lipstick Morrible was wearing this morning?"

For the first time since Galinda had been unfortunate enough to know Avaric, he didn't have a witty remark, or a joke, or any response at all - save for the widening of his eyes. Elphaba had her free hand held to her neck, one eyebrow raised. Galinda couldn't stop herself from looking up at her, cheeks rosy, lips desperate to part with a laugh. The green girl's hair was a little dishevelled, just like it always was after she'd come around from a long reading session in bed. Her glasses were lop-sided on the bridge of her nose and her dark lips were parted slightly.

"Yes, Elphie, I think you're right," Galinda said, grinning. "Is there something you'd like to tell us, Master Avaric?"

Boq was the first to laugh, pointing out the marks to Milla, who flushed bright red. Fiyero was doing his best not to laugh, sharply nudging Avaric in the side. Galinda couldn't keep in her giggles, but she quickly stopped when she felt Elphaba's eyes on her. She looked up, beaming, and was welcomed by a smile from her roommate. A genuine smile that looked like it would turn into a laugh if Elphaba allowed it. But by far the most captivating part was how Elphaba's eyes smiled down at her, too. Suddenly Galinda was even more thankful for the return of the sun; the way it highlighted the brown in the green girl's eyes wasn't something she could easily look away from. Eventually Elphaba's lips twitched and she laughed, loudly and coarsely, all the while squeezing Galinda's arm.


	8. Chapter 8

Finally, here's chapter 8!

I've been arguing with myself over whether I should even continue with this story. I'm not even convinced it's worth it at the moment but here we are. If you're still reading, thank you so much and I hope you enjoy it! Double thanks to those of you have ever left a review, even if it's one word, it makes me feel all warm inside!

That said, this chapter is mostly rehearsing ( _finally_!), Galinda being Galinda and Avaric making some... awkward innuendos.

* * *

It was raining again the next evening, wind howling it's way down the chimney and out through the fireplace. The soft pattering of raindrops against the window would have been relaxing if it wasn't accompanied by the noisy turn of a page every few seconds.

The two roommates were waiting, rather impatiently, for Milla, and Boq, and unfortunately - Avaric. After their disastrous rehearsal the day before, Galinda made it her duty to ensure that the group would never again meet in a place where the threat of rain could swoop in and ruin another script. So Galinda had gone ahead and invited the other cast mates to rehearse in her and Elphaba's room that evening. Without asking the green girl, of course.

Galinda hadn't had visitors during her time at Shiz, and not only because Morrible's dorm rules were borderline oppressive and impossible to keep to; she just hadn't wanted to remind anyone that she was stuck rooming with Elphaba.

Things _were_ different now, though.

Elphaba wasn't somebody she was ashamed of, and the previously scandalous fact that they roomed together had slowly changed into an odd comfort she couldn't hope to explain. Having Elphaba beside her, even with her nonexistent social skills and the tendency to dive into a story and not emerge from it for hours, Galinda felt safe and comfortable.

It didn't seem to help, though, when a violent gust of wind all of a sudden rattled the window latch, sending Galinda up and off her bed, eyes wide. Rain was pelted against the glass and she sighed, sitting back down on the edge of the bed.

"Shouldn't I be the one who's afraid of the rain?"

Galinda smoothed out the front of her dress and shuffled herself further back. "I'm not _afraid_. Only... startled." Elphaba snorted. "Will it _ever_ end?" she continued, taking a long look out of the window. Not that there was much to see. It was all grey and dark and cold-looking. Galinda even shivered a little.

"Everything ends," Elphaba replied. And she must have thought she was being clever, because she just went right back to reading, ending the conversation before it began. A habit that disappointed Galinda every time.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Galinda asked, so quietly it was almost a whisper. "We could get in trouble with Morrible. And Oz knows that's _not_ what I need - not with how badly I'm doing in her sorcery classes. She could turn me into a frog if I were to get on her bad side! And with how awful I am with a wand I wouldn't have the faintest idea how to turn myself back! Do you know what she sai-"

"Galinda," Elphaba said, peering over the top of her book. "I told you, I only had a problem with you not telling me sooner." She turned a page. "That isn't to say I'm happy about having our room invaded by two boys, though I like Miss Milla well enough. So long as Master Avaric stays away from my side of the room, I'll attempt to be... civil."

"Your attempts to be civil don't usually go smoothly, Elphie," Galinda pointed out.

"Not when it comes to him."

"Or Fiyero," Galinda said without thinking.

Elphaba's eyes narrowed. "Of course you'd find a way to bring _him_ into this."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, he was your knight in rusting armor the other day, chasing that page in the rain," Elphaba said with a roll of her eyes.

Galinda thought back on the image of Fiyero flailing about and had to bite back a laugh. "He meant well! And he did get it back in the end..." she trailed off, trying to convince herself more than Elphaba.

"I suppose his astute observation that 'paper dries' also impressed you."

"That _was_ stupid, wasn't it?" Galinda admitted, flushing as soon as the green girl raised an eyebrow at her. "Well it was!"

"I'm not arguing that it wasn't, I'm just surprised _you're_ admitting it," Elphaba said, the corner of her lips turning up. "I don't know why you ever forgave him in the first place."

"Well it's easy to forgive a pretty face," Galinda said, smiling. "I'm sure you'll agree." She couldn't pass up the opportunity to toss her hair.

"I'm not like you, I don't care much for looks."

"You're no fun!"

"I've been told."

Galinda shook her head and leaned back slowly until her head hit her bed. She bounced up and down a bit, hoping to throw Elphaba off her reading. "However much of a bore you can be, I'm beginning to think you're right."

"About what?"

"About Fiyero. And how vain I've been in the past," Galinda mumbled, starting to rethink her decision to tell Elphaba all this. She couldn't see her, all she could see was the ceiling, but Galinda could imagine the green girl smirking to herself between the pages of her book. "I shouldn't have forgiven him so easily. I should've let him stew and squirm in his own guilt, until he came to me on his own to apologise!"

"You've been spending too much time with me," Elphaba muttered, but Galinda could hear the smile in her voice.

"Perhaps that's what I needed."

"Perhaps."

After a moment of sneakily watching her roommate read, Galinda eyed the green girl's hands and took a deep breath. "Elphie, I've been thinking," she said, propping herself up on her elbows.

"Troubling," Elphaba said nonchalantly, swiftly turning a page.

"I've been responsible for hurting you twice now. That's two gazillion times too many!"

"Galinda-"

"So..." she said, drawing out the word as long as she could. "I'd like you to let me do something."

That finally caused Elphaba to lower her book. "What is it?"

"Let me..." Galinda murmured, so quiet that the green girl scowled at her. "Don't laugh!"

Elphaba crossed her arms, and if Galinda could trust her eyes; gulped. "Fine."

"Let me... kiss it better?" The words were so rushed that at first she didn't think the other girl had heard. But then Elphaba seemed to sink further into her bed, her long legs moving beneath the covers, her book completely forgotten and tossed to the side.

Elphaba seemed to become a different person whenever challenged.

Unfortunately for Galinda, she wasn't the only anxious one. The blonde's heart was thumping in her chest, so much that it made her feel dizzy and sick to her stomach as she sat up.

"You don't need to do that."

"It helps!" Galinda exclaimed, cutting Elphaba off before she could say anything to make the blonde's heart skip. "My mother used to do it, when I was a child. She told me it was a magic spell!"

"Did she also tell you that monkeys fly?"

Galinda pouted and gradually slid herself off the edge of her bed, closing the gap between the two beds and hoping not to scare off Elphaba - who presently looked like a frightened animal ready to flee. "It would make me feel better," she whispered. "Come on, Elphie. I just know your Nanny used to kiss your knees when you grazed them, or when you bumped your head! Nobody goes through childhood without that!"

"I had no childhood," Elphaba snapped, eyes still on Galinda, her hands frantically feeling around for her book. Unbeknownst to her, it had fallen on the floor.

Galinda snatched it up, dove onto Elphaba's bed and held it out as bait. "If you want this back you'll let me do it."

"Keep it. I have my own library," the green girl sneered, nodding towards her messy desk piled high with old books.

"But this one is..." Galinda began, examining the thick book in her hands and realising it was upside down. With a glance at an unimpressed Elphaba, she turned it around. "It has... oh, speeches of the early unionist fathers? Ugh, Elphie, I thought you had better taste in books." Galinda smirked and leaned further in, holding the book between her thumb and forefinger, teasing the other girl into relenting. Though, as expected, Elphaba wasn't the relenting type.

"Go back to bed, Galinda."

"With your book?"

"I don't care," Elphaba said through gritted teeth.

The air was thick between them, Galinda could feel that, and it only seemed to get worse as the weather outside grew wilder. The window panes rattled and the wind whistled a loud tune down the chimney; the flame of Elphaba's beside candle flickered and the awful ancient mattress groaned as Galinda crept closer. Elphaba's sheets fell from where she'd been holding them, up under her chin, and before Galinda could react, a quick green hand had stretched out and stolen the book out from under her nose.

"That's cheating!" she cried, letting herself fall forward with an odd ' _fwump_ ' sound from the mattress.

Elphaba was kneeling before her, glaring. "I don't care." She held the book to her stomach and looked about for her bookmark. "You made me lose my page." She turned back, frowning. "And valuable reading time."

Galinda huffed. "Honestly, you should be thanking me. Of all the things to read! Unionist speeches! That romance novel you were reading the other day would be much more deserving of your _valuable reading time_."

"I'll take boring, nonsensical speeches over silly, premature confessions of love any day," Elphaba remarked, though her cheeks were dark.

Galinda smiled, all of a sudden completely aware of their close proximity. She was on her knees, the skirts of her dress bunched up around her waist, with Elphaba stiffly hunched over - close enough that her long hair tickled Galinda's arm whenever she moved her head.

All reason was knocked out of Galinda when she let her eyes wander down to the green girl's hands, which remained locked tightly around the book. With a weak intake of breath, Galinda's hand moved forward, just as Elphaba's moved up. And when Galinda tried to lean over, Elphaba fell, purposely, back into her messy bed. The book was back up, somehow open again, hiding most of Elphaba's face. What it couldn't hide, though, was the nervousness in those brown eyes. Elphaba was trying her best to look focused, but Galinda could see she was far from it.

They sat there for a long moment, Galinda staring and Elphaba trying not to look like she noticed. With the way the green girl would let her eyes flick up every few seconds, Galinda thought she was in for a tumble to the floor. Elphaba's leg _did_ look dangerously close to pushing her off. She didn't, though. And so Galinda decided to dive in and try again. She hadn't lied - though she hadn't told the entire truth either - she _did_ feel horrible about inadvertently harming her roomie, and the kissing _would_ have made her feel better. That was all true. But when it came to motivations, that was only the beginning. She had an urge to touch Elphaba, and it just so happened she wanted to do it with her lips.

It took all of her courage, which wasn't much at all, to lean forward in one swift motion, half crawling towards Elphaba and half pouncing. Brown eyes quickly shot up, wider than Galinda had ever seen them. The blonde knew she would regret it, and yet it didn't stop her. But before she could even hope to reach out and take Elphaba's hand, she had a book in her face just as something crashed, loudly, outside. Galinda almost screamed and threw herself back, just now noticing that Elphaba's face had been the other side of the book, so close to hers. The green girl was still holding it up like a shield, her fingernails digging into the binding.

Then there was another crash from outside, this time against the window. That was when Galinda saw him. Boq, hanging from something - what - she couldn't say. She was far too shocked, and slightly afraid. Why was he hanging in the rain? He wouldn't be going anywhere near _her_ side of the room.

She hurried over and unlatched the window, a gust of wind almost pulling it closed again before she could do anything. It was lucky the window opened all the way, or there would be no hope of fitting even the Munchkin-sized boy through.

"Master Boq! What _are_ you doing?" she yelled through the rain.

"I'd rather answer that inside, if -" he whimpered, quickly adjusting his grip on the wet window ledge and nearly falling in the process, "if you - you wouldn't mind?" Galinda could only nod, still awe-struck that he'd managed to climb so far up. He then clambered through the window, not meeting her gaze. Soaked through, his hair sticking up in every direction possible, he shuffled his way in. Though as soon as he saw Elphaba, he balked and turned back to the window. "Sorry for... interrupting! I'm interrupting, aren't I?"

"You're doing nothing of the sort," came Elphaba's muffled response from behind her book.

Galinda was sure her face was red enough to clash with her pink dress. "How long were you hanging there for?"

"Not long!"

"Too long," Elphaba muttered.

"I - well - I saw you-"

"Saw us what? What were we doing? Elphie, weren't we just - studying? Studying!" Galinda crossed her arms, then straightened them by her sides, and then gave up altogether and dove as gracefully as she could onto her bed. "Elphie was reading me some of the most _interesting_ speeches by the early unionist fathers! Weren't you, Elphie?"

"Miss Galinda, I'm so sorry, this wasn't how I intended to arrive. I-"

Elphaba silenced him by snapping her book shut. "Did you break anything?"

"No, no, I'm fine!"

"I meant outside."

Just as Boq's cheeks flared an even deeper red, there was a faint knock on the door. Galinda, already a bundle of nerves after their previous interruption, flailed her arms about as if she were drowning. Elphaba watched her, arms crossed, obviously the most irritated she'd been since the two had become unlikely friends. Sheepish, Galinda dragged herself off her bed and towards the door. Another knock came, louder this time, and Galinda had to stop herself from screaming at whoever it was to be patient.

She twisted the doorknob, pulling open the door slowly enough to make sure it wasn't Morrible. Instead, she was greeted by a grinning Avaric and a flustered, red-faced Milla. He had his arm around her, leaning on the door frame without a care in the world. Galinda breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Oz! I thought you were Morrible!"

"Miss Galinda, I'm offended," Avaric gasped. "I'm much more subtle with my make-up."

Galinda hurried them in, slamming the door closed as quickly as she could. "How did you make it without anyone seeing?"

Milla flushed. "My room is just down the hall."

Galinda, having forgotten and overtaken with embarrassment, quickly nodded. "Oh, yes! I knew that."

"I travelled beneath the shadow of the night, ducking and diving through the rain, just to accompany you, my fair Miss Galinda," Avaric said, rubbing his hands together by the fire. Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Just getting into the theatrical mood."

"Master Boq?" Milla whispered. "How about you? How did you manage to sneak in?"

"Oh, I - well, I climbed up."

"How gallant," Avaric teased.

"Something like that," Boq replied, still refusing to look anything but scared stiff.

Galinda pried herself away from the door, which she had been stubbornly clinging to in an attempt to avoid Elphaba's gaze. "Anyway," she said, drawing out the word for as long as she could, "as you all should know, we're already far behind schedule!"

"I didn't know there was one," Elphaba deadpanned.

"Well, there is one! And we're behind. So very behind."

"W-what should we do?" Boq asked.

"Rehearse, of course!" Galinda rushed over to her bed and grabbed the script. "Everyone take a seat." Milla gingerly sat on the edge of Galinda's bed while Avaric had no qualms about boisterously leaping onto the other end of it. Galinda wrinkled her nose but said nothing. She only took one look back at Elphaba before taking advantage of the empty space on the green girl's own drab bed. As expected, Elphaba sent her a disgruntled look but made no move to stop her. Though she did look like she would hiss when Boq made his way over. "Master Boq, you should sit by the fire, don't you think? Elphie only ever lets me on her bed and that's when I'm not absolutely _sopping_ wet." Avaric let out a laugh at that and it took Galinda a moment to realise just what she'd implied. A quick look at the green girl out of the corner of her eye made her heart leap. Elphaba had moved out from under her blankets and was sat, casually, beside Galinda. Boq was far enough away for her to be comfortable, Galinda supposed. It made her smile. "Now, I've already memorised my lines from the beginning of Scene One, which is _entirely_ myself."

"Of course," Elphaba muttered.

"So we'll take it from the bottom of page three," Galinda announced. "Master Avaric, set the scene, if you would."

Avaric took the script from her, tapping his chin as he read through the page. "A palace, in the middle of the night. The stars are shining and citizens are cheering and celebrating the death of the Witch."

Galinda nodded. "Go on."

" _She's dead! She's dead! She's really dead?_ " he yelled, with much more vigor than Galinda had expected at such a late hour. She was surprised Morrible didn't thunder through Crage Hall and expel the five of them right there and then.

" _Yes, it's true. She's dead, very, very dead,"_ Galinda sing-songed.

"Dead is dead," Elphaba grumbled.

" _Let us rejoice this victory against evil! She's dead!_ " Avaric delivered the line with some extra flair, though much quieter than before, due to some scolding from Galinda.

Soon Milla was required to join in on the lead in to the first song of the musical. Galinda, being Galinda, assured everyone that there would be separate singing rehearsals. She didn't want Morrible adding 'disruptive behavior' to the already long list of reasons why the headmistress of Shiz had taken a severe disliking to her.

"I don't have many lines, do I?" Avaric complained a while later, during a particularly Galinda-heavy piece of dialogue. "Scared I'll show the rest of you up, Miss Galinda?"

"You should be thankful, Master Avaric," Elphaba replied. "The fewer lines you have the less chance you have of making yourself look stupid."

"That sounds much like a challenge."

"So you're stupid _and_ deaf," Elphaba fired back.

"Elphie! Be quiet and read this," Galinda said, shoving the script at her green friend. It was Elphaba's first appearance in the musical, something that Galinda had been very careful in writing. Originally, the witch had been terrorising the local farmers, cackling and being the villain Galinda had always imagined Elphaba to be. The Witch's first appearance now, though, was almost the exact opposite. Of course, the way in which she is introduced was too good to pass up, especially since Galinda knew Elphaba despised the idea of having to learn how to balance herself onto a broomstick suspended in the air. And so, Galinda's newly written song also took place in the sky - just without the terrorising and threatening. The Witch instead flies around, musing to herself about how much she wishes she could be a part of the beautiful world around her. The scene then leads into Elphaba's first song, about how lonely the Witch is and how she yearns for a different kind of life. Galinda was extremely proud of it, considering how much time she'd forced herself and Boq put into it. She'd only hoped for more of a reaction from Elphaba when she'd given the green girl the script to read.

"This is the song you're always humming, isn't it?"

The question made Galinda want to pinch herself a few dozen times. "You... heard me?"

"Yes, Galinda, all you ever do is hum that song and count on your fingers."

"You... saw that?"

"Do you make a habit of watching Miss Galinda, witchy?" Avaric teased.

Elphaba shifted uncomfortably. "We live in the same room, we have all the same classes, it's hard not to look her way on occasion."

"Oh, is it now?" Avaric leant forward, smirking, thoroughly interested.

"Stop it, Master Avaric! Elphie may have a few... peculiar habits, like hoarding that strange green bottle under her pillow and licking her lips when she's reading, but she's not some scoundrel like you!"

"Well, I'm sorry," he quickly said, not meaning it at all, of course, "but lips and fingers and gazes from afar? Are you sure Miss Elphaba wasn't meant to be your prince, Miss Galinda? I heard that she looked quite dashing in that royal garb during her audition? Though of course, you'd know that already, it sounds like you look her way enough."

Galinda's stomach flipped and she felt her legs turn to jelly. All she could do was be thankful that she wasn't stood up, however much she wanted to get up and throw Avaric out of the room by his collar. Her small stature and the way he was daring her to challenge him with his narrowed eyes and his smug grin made sure that she wouldn't even try. "I - well, that's-"

Beside her, Elphaba watched her descend into a stammering mess, all wide eyed and flushed cheeks. "Thank you, Master Avaric," she said, surprising everyone.

Avaric himself was quick to quirk an eyebrow. "You're welcome, but whatever for?"

"For providing me with a way to disarm Galinda's tongue. Oz knows I needed it earlier on, but I'm thankful all the same."

"That really isn't very good wordi-"

"My tongue is absolutely _fine_!"

Elphaba let out a laugh and made Galinda feel like her terrible embarrassment was worth it.

The next hour and a half was spent reading and rereading lines, with Galinda having no qualms over correcting the others delivery. Avaric was usually the one to earn her attention. Anybody listening in would have had to assume that he had the starring role with the amount of over exaggerated flair he put into a role. He was, after all, only a farmer - a fact that Elphaba reminded him of whenever he overstepped his mark. He would feign offence but never learn his lesson.

Boq, on the other hand, was the complete opposite and Galinda, being the worry wart that she'd slowly become over the past weeks, considered Milla's previous remarks about Boq being an utterly unconvincing villain. One look at him stumbling through his lines, eyes shifting from Elphaba to Galinda and back again, confirmed their suspicions that Boq was incapable of being any kind of threatening.

Granted, the Munchkin boy did try. But each frown and ill-conceived sly expression he attempted to make fell flat. It didn't help that the group was getting tired by his tenth try at an especially 'evil' line of dialogue. And at one point he was interrupted by a long, drawn out yawn from Avaric.

"Hmm, it could use some work," Galinda eventually said, earning enthusiastic nods from everyone else. "You'll come to me and we'll work on it alone, Master Boq!"  
"What did I do wrong?" he asked, hanging his head in shame.

"Nothing," Elphaba said clearly, tucking herself back against the headboard of her bed. "But you're trying much too hard to do it right."

"Miss Elphaba, I'm not sure I understand..."

"Wrong is what you should be aiming for."

"I-"

"What I'm saying is that there is no _right_ way, not for innocent Master Boq," she continued. "If you want to do it right, you have to allow yourself to do it wrong." Galinda blinked. In some strange roundabout way, Elphaba's cryptic advice had managed to bring a small smile to Boq's face.

"Oh, and Master Boq," Galinda interjected, "don't forget that villains _always_ have the best songs!"

"You're only saying that because you wrote it," Elphaba said, trying to hide her smirk.

All that remained of Elphaba's bedside candle was a stub by the time Avaric and Milla left, tiptoeing their way down the hall, floorboards creaking. With the promise of more rehearsals the following week, Boq blushed and thanked Galinda for her help. She tossed her hair and made sure he knew that she was counting on him to improve. Though turning the bashful and somewhat clumsy Boq into a sly, arrogant prince would take more work on her part than Galinda was prepared for. In fact, every aspect of every part of the musical production was taking more from her than she'd originally realised.

Finally, Boq left and Galinda shut the door as quietly as she could. She leaned against it, unaware of Elphaba's stare, and let out a shaky breath. Elphaba suddenly stood, blocking the very little candlelight and startling an already shaken Galinda.

"You're worried," she said, as if it were a fact.

At first Galinda wanted to protest, but even in the dark she knew Elphaba would roll her eyes and see right through her. "Well, if I _wasn't_ worried I would have to be _more_ worried, wouldn't I?"

Elphaba moved out of the way, walked over to her chest of drawers and took out her nightdress. "We should go to bed," she said, though she didn't seem anywhere near as tired as Galinda.

Galinda nodded and drew away from the door, hastily gathering her own pink nightdress from her wardrobe. "I suppose so. Shall I go first?" The only reply she received from Elphaba was a vague mumble as she shut the bathroom door.

She was removing her make-up and yawning in the process when she heard what she thought was humming. Humming or perhaps snoring from one of the dorms next door. Galinda stopped mid-motion, staring at herself in the mirror, biting her lip to stop herself from grinning. It _was_ humming, a low sound, as if someone was attempting to stop themselves but couldn't.

But there was only one person who knew how that particular song went, and she was green, and stubborn and sweet when she wanted to be.


End file.
